#spring fishfly

Bug of the not-really-sure-but-it's-been-awhile

Somebody needs a comb!! ;-)

Spring Fishfly - Chauliodes rastricornis

This particular insect can be rather elusive unless you're near a body of water that is of high cleanliness and features conditions which allow their aquatic young to flourish. While astonishing to have taken these pictures and feature them here, these do not showcase a new Fishfly individual and hardly a new angle on the subject. Specifically, these are the remaining images which showcase an individual that has been previously highlighted, and had its most well-known characteristics outlined. For a brief refresher: insects like this one brandish beautiful and wide wings, and allow male Fishflies have feathered antennae in order to catch the scent of a female's alluring pheromones. Conversely, the female Spring Fishfly would have serrated antennae with saw-like grooves, rather than the elaborate extensions seen on this composed man.  As such, today's upload simply shares this insect as it perches on a screen door beneath a powerful outdoor light in the pre-summer dark night of Muskoka's cottage country. It was a great stroke of luck to find such an insect, and I sincerely hope that nature's good fortune allows may more insect surprises to be found over this new year, whether in cottage country or by some of the smaller ponds and waterways within Ontario.

For those intending to seek out this Megalopteran insect or other insects of similar form and quality such as Trichopterans, using a lamp's light at nighttime may yield success if you're patient. As an outdoor light will draw the attention of even more nocturnal insects in the process, I recommend to pay close attention to the flight of a potential Fishfly find. At a distance, it can closely resemble the flight pattern found in larger species of Moths. so it's not until landing that the identity of your insect would be more certain. Furthermore, searching (safely) in environments such as those in proximity to water or river stones may increase your odds of finding such insects, or others like them. Let's not forget that emerging adult Stoneflies - of the order Plecoptera, are also a pleasant find by the water, as are emerging Odonates. Finally, while not conclusively diagnostic of Fishfly species, timing the seasons right will help increase the chance to observe a Spring individual. As the seasons change and you wait a bit too close to July in Ontario, the Fishfly that you fish for could instead turn out to be a Summer Fishfly instead (but be sure to look at the head's ocelli to be very certain)! Let us see if 2026 has any new large-winged, clumsy flying, and dainty water-bound insects on the docket for this year.

Pretty fly for a fishfly!

Chauliodes rastricornis - Spring Fishfly

The Insect Highlights of 2024 - Jonny's Insect Catalogue

Today is New Year's Eve, which is certainly an eventful day to upload a showcase of insect pictures. Taking a page from last year's, "end of the year post", this is a great time for history to repeat itself. Thusly, today's post shares multiple insect specimens photographed from throughout the year, rather than just a single specie. The pictures here haven't been uploaded to the blog in a post, so today they can all share the spotlight. There are many familiar faces here and all of them are incredible and beautiful creatures. Hopefully there are even more insect delights and finds to enjoy in the upcoming year. In celebration of the upcoming new year, we have the following insects:

Four-Spotted Skimmer - Libellula quadrimaculata - Order Odonata (May 24th)

Giant Crane Fly - Tipula metacomet - Order Diptera (September 16th)

Spring Fishfly - Chauliodes rastricornis - Order Megaloptera (May 27th - from Muskoka)

Milkweed Aphids - Aphis nerii - Order Hemiptera (September 3rd - alongside German Yellowjackets)

Oil Beetle - Meloe campanicollis - Order Coleoptera (October 21st)

Fall Webworm Caterpillars - Hyphantria cunea - Order Lepidoptera (July 25th)

Great Golden Digger Wasp - Sphex ichneumoneus - Order Hymenoptera (July 1st)

European Earwig - Forficula auricularia - Order Dermaptera (September 21st)

Common Red Soldier Beetle - Rhagonycha fulva - Order Coleoptera (July 1st)

Black-Legged Meadow Katydid - Orchelimum nigripes - Order Orthoptera (October 27th)

All pictures here were taken in 2024 with a Google Pixel 4.

Spring Fishfly - Chauliodes rastricornis

The lakes and forests of cottage country always have so many surprises when it comes to insects. I thought the Hudsonian Whiteface Dragonfly was going to be the highlight, but then I saw this large-winged individual trying to phase his way through a screen door to get inside. When I first saw the wingspan and flight pattern, I expected to see a giant Moth, so imagine my surprise to see an elusive Fishfly! He sure does fly like a Moth, and even rests like one with the wings folded backward and was drawn by the porchlights. He was definitely the highlight of the evening and greatly dwarfed all other nearby insects! While an insect like this appears intimidating, rest assured that he is perfectly harmless and can be handled with care. According to Bugguide and other identification sources, this specimen is more likely to be a Spring Fishfly rather than a Summer Fishfly (C. pectinicornis), but not just because he was found flying in May instead of July. Given habitat ranges and differing timeframes of adult emergence from the water, seasonality cannot be the sole factor for identification. Apparently, the best way to distinguish between the 2 species are to examine the two parallel markings on the back of the insect's head, just behind their ocelli.

As can be seen from Pictures 5 and 7, our Spring Fishfly friend has dark-colored head markings contrasting with its lighter shell. The Summer Fishfly's head markings and body are the reverse of that (bright markings, darker shell). This identification however, doesn't take into account other species of Fishfly that may call lakes home, so examine your Megalopteran carefully. As if net-veined wings and yellow highlights along the head's mouthparts, thorax and wing-bases weren't enough of an allure for the camera, there are the elongated and feathered antennae to admire. There's no doubt that these antennae used to locate the enticing pheromones of females (also similar to the function of feathered Moth antennae). The feathering designated this individual as a male; a female Fishfly would have had serrated antennae with saw-like grooves. At a passing glance, with their slight curvature they resemble grand mandibles! However, that style of antenna (pectinate) my only occur for this genus; other genera may have other types. For example, Neohermes Fishflies have antennae that resemble balls on a string (moniliform). Mileage may vary, but if you're looking to try and find some Fishflies, approach the water in spring (or summer) and see what insects come to the light. Have some bug repellent or patches handy to keep the Mosquitoes away, as adult Caddisflies aren't going to eat them.

Bug of the Day