Scott: Thanks. Very interesting. It must have come from the lake that is just about 300 yards from my house, Chuck
----- Original Message ----- From: Scott Bearden To: [email protected] Sent: Monday, June 18, 2012 9:40 PM Subject: Re: [VFB] Mayfly shedding??? Chuck, Once they molt, they return to the water they came from. I have heard some scientists say that they return within hundreds of feet of the water they came from with great accuracy. What you saw alive in your lampshade was a Dun, or basically a young adult mayfly that probably emerged from a nearby body of water within the previous 12-24 hours. They are drawn to lights at night time. Gas station stall lights near streams/rivers/lakes are often clogged with mayflies, caddis and stoneflies you just have to look up. This is probably how yours came to rest in your lampshade. It was drawn to the light. They hang out for a few hours or maybe a day. They shed their Dun shuck and wait for the temperature/humidity or whatever conditions are right to return to the stream. At this stage they are now a spinner and the only thing they have left to do is mate and die within the next few minutes or hours. What you saw was very likely its already muted colors. The hexes I have seen don't necessarily get brighter, but the belly gets brown. Scott On Mon, Jun 18, 2012 at 8:16 PM, Chuck Alexander <[email protected]> wrote: Folks: I have tried and tried to take a photo of it, but remember a cpl weeks back and that beautiful "Hex" mayfly landed on my lampshade???? Well, today, my wife was cleaning house and found his shed "exoskeleton" stuck to the lampshade. It was just like when a snake sheds it's skin. I didn't think these flies had a long enough lifespan to shed like that?? My wife seems to thing that the reason he was such a vivid color of yellow/gold is that he had JUST shed his skin. What say ya'll?? Thanks, Chuck I'll continue to try and take a photo, but I can't seem to get the lighting/focus just right to show it for how it really looks in person. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the "VFB Mail" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/vfb-mail?hl=en VFB Mail is sponsored by Line's End Inc at http://www.linesend.com -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the "VFB Mail" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/vfb-mail?hl=en VFB Mail is sponsored by Line's End Inc at http://www.linesend.com No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 2012.0.1913 / Virus Database: 2433/5076 - Release Date: 06/17/12 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the "VFB Mail" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/vfb-mail?hl=en VFB Mail is sponsored by Line's End Inc at http://www.linesend.com
