Troutnut Forum > Specimen Discussion > shuck and belly
The Specimen
Acerpenna (Blue-Winged Olives) Mayfly Dun
View 14 PicturesThis dun molted most of the way into a spinner (though the wings got stuck) the evening after I photographed it, so I took some more photos of the spinner.
I found a female nearby, probably of the same species.
View 14 PicturesThis dun molted most of the way into a spinner (though the wings got stuck) the evening after I photographed it, so I took some more photos of the spinner.I found a female nearby, probably of the same species.
Region: Northeast
Collected Sep 19, 2006
Added Oct 4, 2006
The Discussion
| Martinlf | December 23rd, 2006, 8:21 pm | |
| Palmyra PA Posts: 907 | That sounds like some southern jive tune, doesn't it? I seem to recall that we had a discussion about mayfly shucks a while back, in which we discussed the more opaque and dark coloration of invaria or rotunda shucks. These acerpenna shucks look much lighter, and greyish in color. Am I right? Are they also more translucent? What color are the nymphs, and what color Z=lon would you use to imitate a shuck on an emerger for this bug? Would this hold true for most baetids? This might explain the excellent luck I've had with the Little Lehigh olive emerger, (basically an RS2 design--see the Litle Lehigh Fly Shop website) which has a shuck of natural CDC that is fairly greyish in color. Also, the first picture shows a clear difference in the color of the top and bottom of the abdomen, another good cue for dubbing color. Jason, these photos are amazing! I hope you have some luck with photos of emergers in the spring. | |
| Louis Is it not an art to deceive a trout with an artificial fly? A trout! that is more sharp-sighted than any hawk . . . and more watchful and timorous than your high-mettled merlin is bold! --Izaak Walton The Compleat Angler | ||
|
These advertisements will disappear if you register. | ||
| GONZO | December 26th, 2006, 8:28 pm | |
| "Bear Swamp," PA Posts: 876 | Louis, The greyish shuck in the photos is the shed pellicle of the dun as the adult transforms into a spinner. The grey (dun) color reflects the duller coloration of the subimago and should not be taken as indicative of the nymphal shuck. I believe that most Acerpenna nymphs are brown to brownish-olive. Most mayfly shucks are more substantial and retain more color than caddisfly shucks. I assume this is because the exoskeleton has more of a protective/camouflage function for final stage mayfly nymphs than for caddisfly pupae (which transform into the pharate adult stage within a shelter). Of course, paler mayfly nymphs (like some burrowing nymphs) will have more translucent shucks (less pigment). | |
| Martinlf | December 27th, 2006, 10:04 am | |
| Palmyra PA Posts: 907 | Duh. I don't know what I was thinking--or I was just not reading Jason's descriptions as I clicked around. Thanks again. | |
| Louis Is it not an art to deceive a trout with an artificial fly? A trout! that is more sharp-sighted than any hawk . . . and more watchful and timorous than your high-mettled merlin is bold! --Izaak Walton The Compleat Angler | ||
New features!
