I fished "my" bit of the itchen on saturday, had a killer session 11 grayling and a salmon parr, i was taking note of the flies peeling off and in amongst the pale wateries and spurwings there were what looked like some yellow mays Heptagenia sulphurea , the books i have suggest it is a little late for them but they are a distinct species especially the duns and i cannot see anything else in my literature that looks like the hatch i saw, the weather is mercefully mild down here and the itchen being fed from groundwater doesnt fluctuate massivly in temperature through the year, i know it doesnt "matter", i matched the hatch and found a killing fly in my box but i am keen to know if my identification is accurate.

__________________

How big were they, hook size guess?

Hi Icky,
They have still been trickling off on the Usk too, not in great numbers but they are still around!!

G

__________________
" Life isnt about waiting for the storm to pass, Its all about learning to dance in the rain"

if i had to tie an imitation i would be reaching for a 14 hook

__________________

Could be a Yellow May Dun.
Still getting the odd one up here to.
Its too big to be anything else i think.

Hi, Icky,
We have had the odd Yellow May right through August and into the present week on Eden and Lyvennet. Flight period for the species is May --- October, according to Prof. J M Elliott, Freshwater Biological Association. Some species have much longer flight periods than the average angler suspects. Prof E also quotes April -- November for E Danica and Feb --- Nov for the little July Dun, B. Scambus, while Large Dark Olive has been recorded in every calendar month.
They must be tough!! I have videod the odd one on ice-rimmed River Lowther while out filming spawning salmon.
Cheers,TC

The tail wasn't damaged by me! Is that the one?
Regards
Rob

__________________
on the banks of the River Dove-walking in Isaac's footsteps

looks very much like the chap yes

__________________

Hi, Icky,
If it had black eyes and yellow colouring, it can't be anything else; but with age, the spinners, male and female, are often found with pale blue eyes. Yours was a dun. Only other sizeable, yellowish, upwinged flies are much less common. Large Spurwing has wings more blue-grey, Pale Evening Dun has only two wings, Yellow Evening Dun is slightly smaller, and less common still. It has three tails and is the closest relative to BW Olive. We have them all on the Eden, I have slides, but most anglers haven't seen Y. E. Dun.
Nice picture, Rob. Almost all of my old 35mm shots are close-ups of specimens in little plastic modelling boxes. They were absolute little swine to position and film. Bits fell off them occasionally, sadly.
Cheers. TC

Thanks for that.. i was sure it was the sub-amigo i saw, the wings were too yellow for it to be the amigo....

__________________