BWO or female Hendrickson

[henrydavid]

I recently posted some photos of what I believed to be a bwo however a friend of mine is telling me it most likely is a female Hendrickson.

Can anyone confirm, and if so what are your criteria?

Here are a couple of the images

These photos above where "normalized" using some software, here are a couple more pics before the software was used.

These insects were a size 16, I did see Hendricksons but not on the same day, the males I picked up seemed much bigger than this one.

 

[pcray1231]

Well, it's not a BWO of the Baetis variety, too many tails and too big. Though I am gonna guess its a BWO of the Drunella variety. Drunella Cornuta.

Markers. Well, there's no real good ones, both genuses have plain wings, large hind wings, 3 tails, and a size that includes your specimen. So I'm mostly goin by body color, as well as tail color (light tails on Drunellas, darker on Ephemerellas).

It is a female.

 

[Chaz]

It's way early for drunella, but it could be, they usually hatch in mid to late June in the morning. They usually are dun(sic) hatching by late morning. However, on a cool day they will emerge all day.

 

[afishinado]

My guess is female Hendrickson. Hendricksons have barred tails vs Drunellas with solid dun tails. See Troutnut pics vs OP pic below.

 

[henrydavid]

Barred tails, I do see them on my insect, and considering the other variables I will call it a female Hendrickson, thanks very much for the input.

What really had me convinced it was a BWO was the light colored body. It was hard to see that in some of the photos but the 1st one up above kind of shows it. I didn't see the "quill" look on it at all.

Is it possible that the insect is a light Hendrickson? Sorry for the stupid questions, I'm going to go read up more on light Hendricksons now.

 

[Chaz]

The reason everyone one separates hendricksons as light and dark is because the females are lighter then the male, which can be very dark. But they are the same bug.
The original pic looks like a drunella not a hendrickson, but because there is great variation in mayflies depending on where they reside I wouldn't rule out hendrickson, though I still think it's a drunella.

 

[crepuscular]

henrydavid, where was this mayfly collected? I don't need exact location or even stream but more like state (I'm assuming PA) but region as well. Getting Ephemerellids to genus can be tough at times especially females. I can't see some impotant characters from your photographs. There is a lot of variation in E. subvaria, but a size 16 is pretty small for one. But it's certainly possible, eye colordoesn't look right to me for it to be Eurylophella and its a little early for them as well but this year being what it is anything is possible as far as emergence dates go. D. cornuta would be early as well and the tails are wrong.

 

[PhilC]

Hey I found a similar looking bug on the Lehigh river, near Luzerne county (in case that is where the OP's pic is from). It was pretty big at least a 14, probably closer to 12. This pic was taken on 3/25/12. I thought it was a BWO, which would make it a Drunella Cornuta...can anyone confirm?

 

[pcray1231]

I can't tell anything from that pic. Zoom in, please!

 

[JackM]

BWOs from 22 to 14 can work at any time for many species. If you cannot catch a trout on a #14 BWO during the Hendrix-en hatch you aren't trying hard enough. 😎

 

[crepuscular]

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[Chaz]

I'm betting you're not going to see Drunnellas for a wile, they hatch in mid to late June in the morning on most days. They are usually stout bodied flies too so these are probably not Drunnellas.

 

[henrydavid]

The original insect was from the Lehigh River in Carbon County.

 

[PhilC]

I'm trying to get my photo game together...hopefully this one is better. Also Carbon county

...and after a few attempts, it seems to have worked

 

[skipper4080]

Phil C that's a two tailed fly my guess would be quill gordon.

 

[pcray1231]

Yeah, drunellas have 3 tails.

 

[PhilC]

I think we have a winner!