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Getting Started in Flyfishing
Caddisflies, Mayflies, and Stoneflies
By GORP Expert Angler Mark D. Williams
Caddisflies (from the scientific order Trichoptera):
These tent-shaped adults are distinctive with their skittering flying pattern. Unlike mayflies, the caddis has no nymph form. Their stages are the egg (which won't concern the flyfisherman), larva, pupa and adult. In the immature phases, the caddis larvae looks like a tiny grub, a wormy little thing. These larvae build houses of twigs, rocks and other debris and sediment in which they live, usually attaching themselves to rocks or other underwater structure. Trout find these cased caddis cocoon cuisine irresistible. This comes in handy when you are selecting an underwater fly to imitate them. The larvae matures into a pre-adult phase, the pupa. The pupa emerges from the case and swims (rises) quickly to the surface to hatch into an adult.
Mayflies (from the scientific order Ephemeroptera):
The ubiquitous mayfly. Found everywhere. Upright wings. The mayfly has a short life cycle consisting of egg, nymph (larva) and adult. The mayfly larva tends to live in soft bottoms but can be found in rocky places as well. Generally though, silty areas are loaded with them. There are many species of mayflies, some 700. The nymphs, which are next to impossible to see, live out their time before becoming duns (the pre-adult phase) by burrowing, clinging or crawling. These larvae usually have three
tails. The duns sheds its skin (and is vulnerable to trout at that time) as it prepares to leave the water and hit the sky. The repeated dipping of an insect to the water is a surefire sign of a mayfly
laying eggs on the water surface. The mayfly adults die shortly after they lay eggs.
Stoneflies (from the scientific order Plectera):
The stonefly is a
clumsy, prehistoric-looking flying creature, more suited to a bad Japanese monster movie than the scenic stream. Stoneflies fly as erratically as my grandmother drives. The adults are flat and long with great wings that when not in use, lay down on their body. You may hear these called salmonflies but those are particular species of the order. The adults can range in color from brown to black to golden to orange.
The life cycle of the stonefly is mostly on land — egg, nymph and adult. Keep your eyes open, you can see the nymphal shucks on tree limbs, rocks, logs where the adults have crawled out onto the shore. Stoneflies tend to like faster water, rocks, boulders, overhanging trees. You will see the stonefly's peculiar flying pattern if you see an insect as big as a small bird dipping and diving, sputtering and coughing and buzzing then splatting on the water. That's a stonefly.
Other wiggly or slimy things trout get to eat:
Other trout, Midges, Tricos, crustaceans such as snails, mysis shrimp and freshwater shrimp, dobsonflies, craneflies, caterpillars, leeches, dragonfly, worms, annelids, damselfly, terrestrials like grasshoppers, beetles, ants, crickets, and baitfish. Just to name a few.
 Get face-to-face with expert Mark D. Williams as he demonstrates how to get started in flyfishing.
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