Stonefly Hatches Continued

A few more things to watch for as you work your favorite freestone trout stream...

If the adults are returning to the water to lay eggs, a big bushy dry fly pattern will draw large trout to the surface. If things are quiet on top, a nymph pattern will do equally as well.

Shifting Gears

This is the time of year that I make the shift from fishing mainly lakes to focusing on streams and rivers. There are a few mayfly hatches at this time of year but is the stonefly hatches that really bring larger trout to their feeding stations. If water levels are favorable on your local trout stream, have a look along the banks for signs of fresh stonefly emergence, then choose your fly accordingly.

Stonefly emergence sites are obvious on bridge abutments
but if you look closely at larger rocks and tree trunks along the stream
you will be surprised at the number of shed exuvia that are present.

There are four species of stonefly exuvia here - all emerging at the same time of year.

The white filaments are the linings of the tracheal respiratory system that are shed along with the exoskeleton.

Looking for a Place to Happen

Yes, dragonflies are on the move. Working a nymph along the bottom and it's game on!

Epitheca spinigera - Fresh from the water and looking for a place to emerge

Get Real

If you are fishing lakes at this time of year forget about all of those attractor type fly patterns. Dragonfly and damselfly emergence is in full swing - so imitating the migrating nymphs as they make their way to shore is the way to go.

Out of the Frying Pan and Into the Fire

Blue winged olives are an early season hatch that results in consistent feeding by trout - both on the surface, and sub-surface. But trout are not the only creatures out for an easy meal...

Freshly emerged Baetis dun - straight from the water and into the web.

Escape is no longer an option.

Best Bet for Spring Trout

One of the first mayflies to emerge in the spring are blue winged olives (Baetis sp.). These mayflies tend to have two or three generations per season depending on how fertile and warm the stream is. When fishing the nymphs remember that it will be the larger mature nymphs that are getting ready to emerge that will be the most active. A simple olive Hare's Ear type pattern is all that is needed, but if you're fishing a fly larger than size 16 your fly is too big.

Baetis sp. nymphs - the larger nymph in the foreground will be ready to emerge in a week or so,

the smaller one in the back still has some growing to do and will emerge in mid-summer. 

Most Baetis nymphs emerge mid-stream on the surface but a few species will crawl out along the stream margin.

Baetis sp. nymph getting ready to emerge.

Not all blue winged olive duns are olive - some come in shades of tan or rusty-brown.

Baetis sp. dun almost fully emerged

The End of Winter

Zapada cinctipes and the last winter stoneflies of the season.

Zapada cinctipes (adult female)

Zapada cinctipes (exuvia)

Mirror, Mirror

Air bubbles have a unique way of catching the light and glittering like diamonds. For aquatic insects like backswimmers and water boatmen, that use trapped air bubbles to breath under water, sparkle can be more important than color. Silver tinsel and Krystal Flash are great body materials to work into any fly pattern tied to imitate these groups.

New Fly Fishing Film

I have posted the results of my latest film project to YouTube. The Last Cast is a short fly fishing documentary with no fancy gear, no epic drone shots, no trendy outfits; just real people talking about life, fly fishing, and the final cast. 

Best enjoyed in HD...

Chasing Rainbows

Freshly molted mayfly imago with sub-imago exuvia in background

Early Season Bug Collecting

A little early season bug collecting for the Northern Lights Fly Fishers open house tomorrow (http://www.nlft.org/2017/03/26/april-15-open-house/)

Zombies and Ghosts

When matching the hatch, choosing a fly color is not always as simple as matching the color of the naturals. For many species of fresh water shrimp (scuds) parasite loads of infected individuals can result in their natural colors fading to a ghost-like hue. Without the advantage of camouflage these ghost scuds are more prone to predation by hungry trout.

A typical olive scud

A scud infected with Acanthocephalan parasites.

In addition to affecting the color, parasite infections can also alter the behavior of the infected scuds - causing them to be more active than usual, and remain active even in broad daylight. This exposes infected scuds to feeding trout more than non-infected scuds. With more pale scuds being gobbled up than natural colored ones it makes sense to use a fly that matches the faded scuds. Enter the Blue Dun Scud...

The Blue Dun Scud

The Blue Dun Scud tends to out fish more natural colored patterns by a significant margin. It's my go-to pattern for trout lakes that have good scud populations.

An infected scud showing the typical orange spot along the back where the parasites have congregated.

More information on the life cycle of scud parasites can be found in the Fall 2016 issue of Fly Fusion Magazine.

A Passing Phase

Reflections

Reflections on the 2016 trout season...

Translucent

For aquatic insects that emerge in the surface film the partly shed cuticle (shuck) becomes an important consideration in fly design. As the adult works its way out of the cuticle the trailing shuck takes on a semitransparent, translucent look. When viewed from below, sunlight reflects and refracts off the thin shed cuticle and associated air bubbles, giving the trailing shuck a slightly glittery appearance. 

When tying emerger patterns the best way to imitate the trailing shuck is to tie in a tail of sparkly material. A few of strands of Krystal Flash or Antron yarn will usually do the trick. But remember to keep the tail sparse - it's easy to over do it.

Shed cuticles from Midge pupae (Chironomidae) viewed from above.

Shed cuticles from Midge pupae (Chironomidae) viewed from below. Note the air bubbles within each shuck.

Shed BWO cuticle (Baetis) viewed from below.

Chasing the End of the Trout Season

Scenes from late October 2016...

Choosing the Right Fly Color

One thing to consider when tying nymph patterns is that many aquatic bugs will tend to match the predominant color of the substrate they inhabit. The nymphs of any one species can vary in color from stream to stream, and in some cases from one section of a stream to another - but usually within a range of colors that are characteristic for that species. Green Drake (Drunella) nymphs for example can range from mottled brown to olive-green. If most of the rocks are mottled shades of brown, the nymphs will tend towards the brown end of the spectrum. If the stream bottom is covered in a layer of dark algae, or darker colored rocks are more common, shades of olive or olive-brown will dominate. Something to consider next time you are choosing a fly color.

Camouflage is key when trying to avoid being eaten (Drunella grandis nymph)