Trout Streams

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Wisconsin

> The Namekagon River

Three big Ephemerella subvaria mayfly nymphs share a rock with some cased caddis larvae.

In this picture: Mayfly Species Ephemerella subvaria (Hendrickson) and Saddle-case Maker Genus Glossosoma (Little Brown Short-horned Sedges).

An Ephemerella subvaria nymph clings to a white rock in the foreground, and there are other nymphs in the background.

In this picture: Mayfly Species Ephemerella subvaria (Hendrickson) and Insect Order Trichoptera (Caddisflies).

A crayfish chews on a Hexagenia limbata nymph shortly after a small Hex emergence. I didn't catch any fish, but playing around with my flashlight and camera in the rocks proved productive.

In this picture: Arthropod Order Decapoda (Crayfish) and Mayfly Species Hexagenia limbata (Hex).

This Ephemerella subvaria (Hendrickson) nymph picture is one of my favorites.

In this picture: Mayfly Species Ephemerella subvaria (Hendrickson).

There's a stonefly nymph in the bottom right corner of this picture, but what's really interesting is those white blotches. They're pretty common in my Wisconsin home river river, stuck flat onto the rocks--lots of rocks have a speckled look as a result. They are microcaddis cases, made by larvae of the caddisfly family Hydroptilidae. These are made by larvae of the subfamily Leucotrichiinae, most likely the genus Leucotrichia. They spin little flat oval cases of silk tight and immobile against the rocks.

In this picture: Caddisfly Species Leucotrichia pictipes (Ring Horn Microcaddis).

The mayfly and stonefly nymphs in this picture blend in extremely well.

In this picture: Mayfly Species Ephemerella invaria (Sulphur Dun) and Insect Order Plecoptera (Stoneflies).

I took this picture of the underside of a large slab of ice in a northern Wisconsin river in early February. I got cold.