CHAPTER VII 

 MAYFLY AND LAKE FISHING 



1. The Mayfly and the stonefly. 



Southern anglers, when speaking of the 

 Mayfly, refer to the green drake, a large, 

 ephemeral insect known to science as Ephe- 

 mera Vulgata. North- country fishermen, on 

 the other hand, apply the appellation to a 

 very different creature. The latter is really 

 the stonefly, whose Latin name is Perla 

 Bicaudata. Both these flies spend their larval 

 state beneath the water. In this state the 

 stonefly is known as the " creeper," and is 

 then quite as keenly devoured by the trout 

 as when later on it sports wings. Even when 

 fully matured, the stonefly, besides being 

 ugly, is a clumsy creature, the female only 

 being able to make some feeble use of her 

 wings. The male is known as the "jack," 

 and is quite unable to rise from the ground. 

 The Mayfly proper is a large and handsome 

 insect, and constitutes the biggest lure, 



87 



