Ephemerella subvaria: Hendrickson

photo: Alex Cerveniak

Size: 12mm
Habitat: Stream areas with slow to medium current
Behavior:

• Nymph activity peaks around 1pm in mid to late April, and by about 2pm or 3pm by mid-May
• Nymphs swim by wiggling their abdomen
• Strong swimmers in slow to medium current, but dead drift in faster current
• Prior to emergence, their wingcases darken substantially

Imitations:

Bead Head Awesome- Click Photo for Recipe	Gilled PT Nymph- Click Photo for Recipe	Prince Nymph- Click Photo for Recipe
Pheasant Tail Nymph- Click Photo for Recipe

Subvaria Male -photo: Alex Cerveniak

Size: 10mm to 12mm
Hatch Dates: see Hatch Chart for your area
Water Temperature: 50°-55°F
Time of Day: Anytime between 12pm and 6pm, peaking between 2pm and 4pm
Habitat: Slow to Medium current
Behavior:

• Nymphs swim to the surface, sometimes several times, before emerging.
• Hatches often happen in waves lasting about 20 minutes

Imitations:

Stillborn Emerger- Click for Recipe

Dark Hendi Sparkle Comparadun: Click Photo for Recipe

Light Hendi Sparkle Comparadun: Click Photo for Recipe

Subvaria Male Dun- photo: Alex Cerveniak

Size: 10mm to 12mm
Behavior:

• During cold weather, duns will ride on the surface for extended periods of time
• It has been my experience that subvaria duns have a fondness for Willow Branches
• Males are typically darker/more red in coloration than females and are often called Red Quills

Imitations:

Thorax Dun- Click Photo for Recipe	Red Quill- Click Photo for Recipe	Biot Body Thorax Dun: Click Photo for Recipe
Dark Hendi Sparkle Comparadun: Click Photo for Recipe	Light Hendi Sparkle Comparadun: Click Photo for Recipe	Dark Hendi Parachute: Click Photo for Recipe
Light Hendi Parachute: Click Photo for Recipe

Male Spinner- photo: Alex Cerveniak

Male Spinner- photo: Alex Cerveniak

Size: 10mm to 12mm
Air Temperature: 60° to 70°F
Time of Day: late afternoon to after dusk- if evening air temps are particularly cold, spinners will fall the following morning when air temps reach their preferable temperature

Behavior:

• Spinners fall en masse over riffles and runs.
• Females lay eggs from above the water’s surface, however, egg laying patterns still fish well.

Imitations:

Foam Post Parachute- Click Image for Recipe

TroutNut.com’s Hendrickson Page
excellent subvaria photography, natural history info, and fishing tips

Fly Fishing Entomology- The Hendrickson Hatch
Great article on all things Hendrickson

Oak Orchard Fly Shop Hatch Chart
Excellent info on subvaria, including pictures of each phase of their life cycle as well as a suggested imitation

Print References

Hatches II by Al Caucci and Bob Nastasi, pages 68 to 74

Selective Trout by Doug Swisher and Carl Richards, pages 62 to 63