A "model" posing for your tying pleasure

[Thwack]

Fishing was tough on the part of California's Fall River where I was today. Folks that know the river were worried the lack of plants in the water would hurt the fishing (lots of silt and the water even looked a little murky instead of its usual crystal clear).

I was able to find some bug life in the water though...and I love sticking my camera underwater to snap pictures (much easier than trying to remember the details later when I'm trying to figure out what flies to tie for future trips).

I figured I'd share the best pic of the day for anybody that wants a live model for their future nymph tying...



(if you open the image in a new window and edit the URL to replace the "M" just before ".jpg" with "O" [oh, not zero] and you can see the original, full size version...takes longer to download but shows more detail).

[hap]

Hope you do not mind I just set that as my background for a while!

[Thwack]

Hope you do not mind I just set that as my background for a while!

I don't mind at all. It's an honor to have a pic I've taken appreciated. Enjoy!

[ibrb]

thank you, set pic as my background also

[Steve Molcsan]

ID anybody, clinger for sure ,

Rhithrogena morrisoni

My guess then would be a march brown?

Steve

[Thwack]

ID anybody, clinger for sure ,

Rhithrogena morrisoni

My guess then would be a march brown?

Steve

I'm not sure yet what it was but it was much larger than normal for that water (much!)...

The usual sizes for a hare's ear nymph (one of the suggested patterns for imitating the March Brown in western US waters) is much too small to look like the nymph in the pic.

I should have put a quarter or something in there to give it scale.

Seeing that nymph explains why I've had some luck there fishing much larger than normal flies (usually bushy caddis patterns). This thing was not the usual size 18 or 20 you'd want to fish on the Fall River. It was closer in size to the minnows that hang out by the dock.

[hap]

It is definitely not a Rhithrogena... They have eyes and antenna on the top of the head, not looking forward. I brought a new species of Rhithrogena from the Russian River, here in AK, to a friend working on mayflies for his MS. Mainly because of that experience I know the shape of the Genus... He didn't name it after me!

I believe this is an Ephemerella...
art

[Thwack]

I've been staring at pics on troutnut's website trying to guess what it might be. I'm thinking one of the various drakes (which matches well with hap's suggestion of Ephemerella I think).

I've seen some sizable nymphs in the water there in prior years and I've seen big adults (not necessarily related to the nymph I posted) so fishing 18-22's isn't the only option there after all...

Here's an adult I shot in August '06 in the same general area:

[Steve Molcsan]

It is definitely not a Rhithrogena... They have eyes and antenna on the top of the head, not looking forward. I brought a new species of Rhithrogena from the Russian River, here in AK, to a friend working on mayflies for his MS. Mainly because of that experience I know the shape of the Genus... He didn't name it after me!

I believe this is an Ephemerella...
art

Hap, a PMD?

Now I am also thinking maybe a Green Drake small western type.

[Steve Molcsan]

I've been staring at pics on troutnut's website trying to guess what it might be. I'm thinking one of the various drakes (which matches well with hap's suggestion of Ephemerella I think).

I've seen some sizable nymphs in the water there in prior years and I've seen big adults (not necessarily related to the nymph I posted) so fishing 18-22's isn't the only option there after all...

Here's an adult I shot in August '06 in the same general area:

That is not a Mayfly to ugly..lol

Some sort of true fly? Order Diptera