Can someone explain------

[Troutmeister]

For the past week or more I've been having stoneflies crawling on me while fishing in 3 different counties. I know what the nymphs look like and also the adults. My understanding is stonefly nymphs are crawlers, not swimmers.


I never see them when I am wading until I feel them crawling on my head or neck. Do they crawl onto my waders and then crawl up and hatch into winged adults? So strange that I've never seen one actually hatching. Are they flying onto me after hatching? Also strange that I never see em on the front of my waders, always on the back of my neck and ears.

 

[Bamboozle]

Unlike mayflies, which hatch in the water, stoneflies crawl out of the water, climb up on rocks, woody debris, or other structure and shed their nymphal shucks. They then take flight as full-fledged adults.

That structure may include wading anglers... 😉

 

[Troutmeister]

Bamboozle, I understand your first paragraph. Are you saying they are actually hatching on my waders? That's what I can't figure out, as I said in my post I never see em crawling as nymphs, only adults, and always up high on my neck and head.

 

[Bamboozle]

They could be, but more than likely they hatched on some rocks along the bank and flew onto you.

 

[Nymph-wristed]

They love to fly into necks especially 😁 What Bamboozle said is spot on. You are also likely standing in the shallow waters close to the banks they crawled towards to do their thing.

 

[Bamboozle]

...as I said in my post I never see em crawling as nymphs, only adults, and always up high on my neck and head.

At about 8 - 9 mm long and dark, they are pretty easy to miss sitting on dark colored rocks or woody debris along a stream bank and NOT always highest up on the biggest rock or log...

I used to encounter them a LOT when I fished a couple of Pocono streams. When I'd start seeing them flying about or landing on me I'd walk over to the bank and start looking in earnest and sure enough I find them sitting there...

...looking at my neck with lust... 😉

 

[Troutmeister]

I guess it makes more sense that they are actually hatching streamside rather than on my waders and flying onto me. It's just that the first I'm usually aware of them is crawling around my neck.

 

[6xAdams(Jones)]

If you have empty shucks on your person or floating away from you... Yes, they are crawling up on your body and hatching.