Mayflies
Mayflies are small aquatic insects with upright wings. Mayflies come
in a vast array of colors and sizes. Some flies are as large as 2" and as
small as 2 or 3 millimeters. The life cycle of the mayfly plays an important
part in fly fishing. Fish feed on mayflies throughout most stages. Mayfly
nymphs are a great source of nourishment for trout and panfish. The nymphs
represent a good portion of a trout diet. Emergers are the stage in where
the nymph has reached the water surface and is getting ready to break from it's
nymphal shuck and become a Dun. The dun stage lasts only a few miniutes to a few hours.
Dun's have opague wings. Once the mayflies have mated and layed eggs, they will expire.
In death, the mayflies still provide an important souce of food. Expired mayflies fall
to the water in the spinner stage.
