When mayfly duns pop out of the water and fly away, they aren't yet officially "adults." They have one more step before they're ready to mate: to perch on streamside vegetation and molt one more time into the stage scientists call "imago (Imago: The sexually mature adult stage of the mayfly is called the imago by scientists and the spinner by anglers.)" and we call "spinner." This article shows step-by-step close-up photos of a Leptophlebia cupida (Black Quill) dun molting into a spinner, and it explains what's going on inside the mayfly. Read on...

As I prepared to set foot for the first time in the Catskills' storied Esopus Creek, I noticed an Isonychia bicolor nymph crawling out onto a rock at my feet. I pulled out my handy little camera and started snapping pictures. Read on...

There is a rising chorus of curmudgeons who decry the use of Latin names for bugs, ridiculing the vocabulary contests we hold around the fireplace of their imaginations. In reality we use scientific names because they're the less confusing way to swap practical advice about the details of each hatch. Read on...

The hot-button topic of naming places frequently faces anyone who runs a fishing website or even posts on a fishing forum. Here I give my take on the issue, as well as Troutnut.com's policy. Read on...

Learn the handy system by which biologists arrange all living things. The Aquatic Insects section of this site will be easier to navigate, and make more sense, for readers who understand the basics of the taxonomic system. Read on...

Once in a while somebody asks questions about the guy behind this site, so I've provided the answers here. Read on...

Some important background information will help readers get the most out of information about fly hatches on this website or in any angling entomology book. Aquatic insects are complicated and unpredictable, and emergence dates, times, and habits often deviate from the "typical" behavior. Learn how to predict and understand the most common deviations. Read on...