Stonefly: All You Need to Know in a Nutshell

Stoneflies are fascinating insects that play an essential role in the ecosystems they inhabit. They belong to the order Plecoptera and can be found near clean, cool streams and rivers. These insects are not only captivating to observe, but they also serve as important indicators of water quality and environmental health.

As you begin to explore the world of stoneflies, you’ll discover that their life cycle is quite unique. Adult stoneflies have two pairs of clear, membranous wings, as well as long, threadlike antennae. Their dull, dark colors help them blend in with their surroundings. They start their lives as aquatic larvae known as nymphs or naiads, which have six sprawling legs and a segmented abdomen with two long tails. Stoneflies are usually found around stones in streams, giving them their common name.

In this article, you’ll get to know more about these intriguing insects, their life cycle, their significance in the environment, and how their presence can provide valuable information about water quality. So, let’s dive in and explore the captivating world of stoneflies.

Understanding Stonefly

Stoneflies are fascinating insects that can be found in various aquatic habitats. These little creatures play a vital role in their ecosystems. In this section, you’ll learn about the basic characteristics, life cycle, and importance of stoneflies.

Stoneflies belong to the order Plecoptera. They are usually dull and come in colors like dark brown, yellow, or sometimes green. Most of their life is spent underwater as nymphs before emerging as adult stoneflies. Adult stoneflies have two pairs of clear, membranous wings that rest closely down their back. They also possess long, threadlike antennae.

Nymphs, also known as naiads, are aquatic creatures. They have six legs, a flat body, and a segmented abdomen with two long appendages. The nymphs can be found in well-aerated, flowing water where they live for up to three years. Stonefly nymphs are often seen on or around stones in streams and rivers, hence their common name.

Some characteristics of stoneflies include:

• Two pairs of wings in adults
• Long, threadlike antennae
• Aquatic nymph stage
• Dull colors
• Found in streams or rivers

Stoneflies have an intriguing life cycle. Adult stoneflies lay their eggs in water, and once the larvae hatch, they resemble small, wingless versions of the adults. With each molt, the nymphs gradually develop a more adult-like appearance. This life cycle is completed when they metamorphose into their winged adult form.

Despite living in the water, stoneflies are not harmful to humans or animals. They don’t feed on people, plants, or trees and do not bother our ecosystem. In fact, they play an essential role in the food chain, serving as prey for various fish species.

Now that you have a basic understanding of stoneflies, you can appreciate their significance in maintaining the health and balance of aquatic ecosystems. By learning about these small yet essential insects, you’re taking an important step toward understanding the delicate interplay of life within our natural world.

Stonefly Software and Hardware Components

Stonefly Hardware

Stonefly offers a variety of hardware components for their storage solutions. They include NAS (Network Attached Storage) devices, SAN (Storage Area Network) devices, and servers. These components are designed to work seamlessly with their software solutions, ensuring efficient storage management, data security, and scalability. Key features of Stonefly hardware include:

• High-performance servers
• Integrated hypervisors
• Advanced networking capabilities

As an example, one of Stonefly’s flagship products is their Stonefly Private Cloud, which combines the power of dedicated hardware with the flexibility of cloud technology.

Stonefly Software

Stonefly software solutions are designed to manage and optimize their hardware components. They offer a range of features for data management, protection, and optimization, such as deduplication, thin provisioning, and software-defined networking. Here is a list of some key software features:

• StoneFusion: An operating system that provides centralized management of storage environments
• SCVM: A virtual storage appliance that helps consolidate storage and streamline management
• Backup software: Provides data protection and disaster recovery functionalities

Additionally, Stonefly offers software-defined storage solutions, which help to simplify storage management and improve flexibility across their hardware offerings. These features allow you to customize your storage environment, making it more efficient and adaptable to your specific needs.

In conclusion, Stonefly provides comprehensive software and hardware components to help you optimize your data storage infrastructure. By understanding the features and capabilities of each component, you can make informed decisions when selecting the right solutions for your organization.

Stonefly Data Management

Data Storage and Backup Solutions

When managing data for stoneflies, you’ll want to have robust storage and backup solutions. Consider using a network attached storage (NAS) or a storage area network (SAN). These systems allow you to store large amounts of data efficiently. For example:

• NAS: An easy-to-use option for file sharing and collaboration among multiple users.
• SAN: Offers increased performance and scalability, suitable for demanding workloads.

When it comes to backups, consider the following methods:

• Snapshots: Quickly capture the state of your data at a specific point in time.
• Backup Vaults: Safely store multiple versions of your files offsite.
• S3 Object Storage: Leverage cloud-based storage services like Amazon S3 for added redundancy and accessibility.

Data Protection Features

Ensuring the security of your stonefly data is essential. Here are some key features to consider:

• Write-Once Read-Many (WORM): Preserve data integrity by preventing modification or deletion.
• Air-Gapped Volumes: Isolate sensitive data with a physical barrier to guard against ransomware and unauthorized access.
• Anti-Virus and Anti-Ransomware: Use software that scans, detects, and removes potential threats before they can cause damage. For example, Windows Defender or Norton AntiVirus.
• Encryption: Protect your data with encryption techniques, both in transit and at rest. Solutions like SSL/TLS and AES-256 can secure your data effectively.

In summary, to protect your stonefly data, store and back up your information using reliable systems like NAS, SAN, or S3 object storage. Implement security features like WORM, air-gapped volumes, anti-virus, anti-ransomware, and encryption to safeguard your research.

Performance and Availability

When observing stonefly performance, they serve an essential role in their ecosystems. Stoneflies provide valuable services, such as aiding in nutrient cycling and serving as a critical food source for other organisms like fish and birds. For example, stonefly larvae consume algae, living plants, dead leaves, wood, and even each other, making them vital to the food chain¹.

Stoneflies have a high availability in different environments. They can be found in various types of streams, from perennial ones that flow year-round to intermittent ones that may experience reduced or lack of flow during certain seasons². Their presence is an indicator of water quality; healthy populations of stoneflies signal good water quality, while their absence can indicate pollution³.

Let’s compare their performance in perennial and intermittent streams:

Key features of stoneflies include:

• Aquatic larvae
• Adult emergence in winter and early spring
• Indicators of water quality
• Ancient order of insects dating back 300 million years⁴

In summary, stoneflies play a vital role in their ecosystems, providing significant ecological benefits. Their performance and availability across different types of streams showcase their adaptability and usefulness as water quality indicators.

Virtualization with StoneFly

Virtual Machines and Hypervisors

When discussing StoneFly, it’s essential to understand the concept of virtual machines (VMs). Virtual machines are software-based environments used to run programs as if they were on a physical computer. Virtualization technology enables the creation of multiple VMs on a single physical machine, sharing resources such as CPU, memory, and storage.

For virtual machines to run, a hypervisor is required. A hypervisor is a software layer responsible for managing VMs and their resources. There are two types of hypervisors:

• Type 1: Native hypervisors run directly on the host’s hardware in kernel mode (e.g., VMware ESX, Microsoft Hyper-V, Oracle VM Server, Xen)
• Type 2: Hosted hypervisors run as a process inside the host OS, often hardware-accelerated (e.g., VMware Workstation, VirtualBox, QEMU)

Hyper-converged and Converged Infrastructure

When it comes to data center consolidation, StoneFly offers converged infrastructure and hyper-converged appliances. Converged infrastructure combines compute, storage, and networking into a single system to simplify management and reduce costs. On the other hand, hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI) takes it a step further by incorporating virtualization technology directly into the appliances, creating a fully integrated software-defined environment.

Advantages of converged infrastructure:

• Simplified management
• Reduced costs
• Scalability

Disadvantages of converged infrastructure:

• Less flexibility compared to hyper-converged infrastructure
• May require additional software for virtualization

Advantages of hyper-converged infrastructure:

• Greater scalability and flexibility
• Integrated virtualization technology
• Simplified management

Disadvantages of hyper-converged infrastructure:

• Potential hardware lock-in with specific vendors
• May require an initial investment in new appliances

Stonefly Storage Solutions

When choosing storage solutions for your Stonefly setup, it’s essential to consider various factors like storage resources, tiered storage, and cost-effectiveness. Let’s explore some key aspects to help you make an informed decision.

Unified Storage: Unifying your storage infrastructure simplifies management and increases operational efficiency. A good example is the NIST SP 800-209 guideline, which covers storage virtualization and cloud-hosted resources.

Tiered Storage Architecture: By implementing a tiered storage system, you can dynamically allocate your resources based on performance needs and budget constraints. Here’s a quick comparison:

Scalability: Opting for a storage solution with scale-out capabilities allows you to expand your storage capacity seamlessly, while scale-up options may have hardware limitations. So, always consider long-term growth.

Storage Provisioning and Tiering: By automating storage provisioning and implementing storage tiering, you can optimize resource utilization, ensuring your most critical data is always accessible.

Some attractive features of Stonefly storage solutions include:

• Write-once-read-many (WORM) storage to prevent data tampering
• Cost-effective tiered storage that balances performance and price
• Highly scalable systems to accommodate future growth

In conclusion, when selecting a Stonefly storage solution, prioritize operational efficiency, scalability, and cost-effectiveness. Remember to evaluate your storage resource requirements, unifying your storage infrastructure with tiered systems when possible, and always keep an eye on future growth. Happy storage hunting!

Security with Stonefly

When it comes to Stoneflies, you don’t need to worry about security issues. Stoneflies are friendly aquatic insects that play a vital role in our ecosystem. They neither feed on people, animals, plants, or trees, nor do they invade our pantries or nest in our homes¹.

While stoneflies are secure creatures, consider encrypting your data in other areas. For example, when using digital devices, it is essential to protect your sensitive information using encryption methods. This can help you safeguard your privacy and secure your online experiences.

Here’s a quick comparison between Stonefly security and data encryption:

Remember to practice safe and secure habits, both in the natural world and online.

Stonefly Use Cases

Stoneflies have a variety of uses in different aspects of the environment. Let’s explore some of their critical workloads and use-cases.

Environmental Indicators

Stoneflies serve as environmental indicators in aquatic ecosystems. Their presence or absence can help determine the health of rivers or streams. Healthy stonefly populations often imply good water quality and stable ecosystems.

Fish Food Supply

Stonefly nymphs and larvae are an essential food source for many fish species. Their abundance in freshwater habitats supports thriving fish communities, contributing to the health and biodiversity of aquatic ecosystems.

Biological Control

Stoneflies can play a role in controlling some aquatic pests. They feed on various invertebrates, including harmful ones, helping maintain a balance in aquatic ecosystems.

Scientific Research

Researchers often study stonefly species like the meltwater stonefly to better understand the effects of climate change on freshwater ecosystems. The meltwater stonefly, for example, is sensitive to temperature changes, and its population decline has implications for ecosystem dynamics.

To summarize, stoneflies hold various critical workloads mainly related to maintaining stable and healthy aquatic ecosystems. Their presence in freshwater habitats serves as an environmental indicator, providing essential insight into water quality. They are also a significant food supply for fish species and contribute to biological control through predation on aquatic pests.

Costs and Pricing of Stonefly

When considering the costs and pricing of stoneflies, it’s essential to understand the factors that determine these costs. To help you understand this, here are some important points regarding the costs and pricing of stoneflies.

Stoneflies are insects belonging to the order Plecoptera and have more than 670 species in North America. Because of the vast diversity of stoneflies, you may find variations in prices depending on the specific species and their availability in your area.

Prices can also be affected by factors such as the intended use of the stoneflies. For example, certain species are popular among fishermen as bait, while others might be more suited for research purposes or as a resource for aquatic ecosystem health. As a result, the demand for certain stoneflies may influence their cost.

While it’s difficult to provide specific pricing for each type of stonefly, it’s important to consider the total cost of ownership when acquiring them. For instance, if you’re using stoneflies for scientific research or as a hobby, you might need to factor in additional costs, such as transport, storage, and equipment needed for studying or maintaining the insects.

In summary, when you’re looking into stoneflies and their costs, keep the following points in mind to make an informed decision:

• The species and availability of stoneflies in your region
• Their intended use (fishing bait, research, ecosystem health assessments)
• Additional costs associated with owning and maintaining stoneflies

Additional Features

Stonefly Management

When it comes to stonefly management, it’s important to ensure a healthy environment for these insects, as they are sensitive to water quality and often used as indicators for habitat health. For example, properly maintaining the cleanliness of streams and rivers can help support stonefly populations.

Cloud Connect and On-Premises Options

Stoneflies can be found in both cloud-connected environments, such as high-elevation springs and streams, like the Northern forestfly, and on-premises locations, such as rivers and lower-elevation habitats.

Caching and Stream Scaling

In their aquatic habitats, stonefly larvae play a crucial role in stream ecosystems by caching and breaking down organic materials. This helps maintain a balanced ecosystem that can scale to support various organisms living within the stream.

Hardware Appliances: Hot Tier Storage

Regarding hot tier storage, stoneflies act as a natural “hardware appliance” in aquatic systems. Their feeding habits help break down organic matter and contribute to a cleaner environment.

Considering these critical features of stoneflies, here are some pros and cons of their presence in aquatic ecosystems:

Pros:

• Contribute to a healthy and balanced ecosystem
• Act as indicators of water quality
• Provide food for other organisms

Cons:

• Can be sensitive to environmental changes
• May be vulnerable to pollution and habitat degradation
• Requires regular monitoring for conservation efforts

In conclusion, stoneflies are essential in maintaining healthy aquatic ecosystems. By understanding their additional features and the benefits they provide, you can have a better appreciation for these unique insects and their role in our environment.

Reader Emails

Over the years, our website, whatsthatbug.com has received hundreds of letters and some interesting images asking us about these insects. Scroll down to have a look at some of them.

Letter 1 – Small Winter Stonefly

Bugs on Outside of home
Location: Central PA
December 4, 2011 12:36 pm
Hello, I have these little bugs all over the outside of my house. I am not sure what they are. There are a lot of them and I didn’t know if I should get them taken care of the issue or not. Thanks for your time.
Signature: Ryan Lucas

Dear Ryan,
This is a Small Winter Stonefly in the family Capniidae and this past January, a submission from Pennsylvania was our featured Bug of the Month.  Small Winter Stoneflies, which are sometimes called Snowflies, will not harm your family nor your home.  They are harmless creatures that need fresh unpolluted water to survive, so their presence in large numbers is an indication that you have unpolluted running water nearby. 

Thank you for the quick response!!
It is good to know that these are safe bugs and that the stream nearby is not polluted.  It’s a great site you have and is very helpful.
Thanks again!!
Ryan Lucas

Letter 2 – Giant Stonefly or Salmonfly

Interesting Long Black Bug
July 18, 2009
Thanks for taking a look at this bug. It was hanging out on the side of our house, and wasn’t afraid when I brought the camera lens up close. It must have been at least two inches long, and that may have been just the body length. It was late spring. I have higher resolution pictures if required.
Shilo
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Hi Shilo,
This is a Giant Stonefly or Salmonfly in the genus Pteronarcys.  There is a matching photo on BugGuide also from Alberta Canada.

Letter 3 – Giant Stonefly

Large Flying Insect
Location: Elmira (upstate) NY
January 7, 2011 5:50 am
This large unusual flying insect appeared on my printer in April of 2008.
I took a shot of it because it was so unusual looking to me. I’ve had the photo in my comp ever since and while cleaning my files came across it again. I’m still curious what is this bug? I haven’t seen one since I snapped the shot.
Signature: Debbie F

Hi Debbie,
This is a Giant Stonefly in the genus Pteronarcys.  Of the entire family Pteronarcyidae, BugGuide indicates:  “st nymphs develop in medium to large rivers adults are nocturnal and often attracted to light.”  They are sometimes called Salmonflies.

Letter 4 – Springfly

Subject:  Flying earwig termite??
Geographic location of the bug:  Washington state
Date: 04/02/2019
Time: 07:42 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Found this guy climbing up the wall inside our house after he was knocked off a blanket.. initially thought termite? But the things on his butt made me think earwig. Tried googling to no avail..
Currently April 2nd in Washington state.
Thank you for reading,
How you want your letter signed:  AJ

Dear AJ,
This is a Stonefly, a harmless insect that is found not far from a source of fresh water because they develop as aquatic larvae or naiads.  We believe we have matched your individual to this image posted to BugGuide of a Stonefly in the genus Skawla which is classified in the subfamily Perlodinae, commonly called Springflies, presumably because they fly in the spring.

Letter 5 – Giant Stonefly

Big orange neuropteran(?) Seattle
Location: Seattle (Woodinville)
April 26, 2011 12:27 am
The kids spotted this
”Squee! Can it hurt us?”
”I don’t think so: no sting, and it looks like chewing mandibles”
”Ooo, it can FLY”
”Pretty”

”I wanna hold it”
”Mee too”
”Me”
”Me!”
”Me!”
Well, it was outside, on an unusually non-rainy and warm spring day (4/24/11) here in a rural suburb of Seattle, at our new house, where there are a lot of creeks and swampy ground. We found our first-ever salamander the same day. The critter likes syrup, can fly, and is unusually …charismatic… for the area. Since there are all sorts of worries about invasives here like Asian Longhorn Beetle and Emerald Ash Borer, I thought it best to ask before letting it go. Unfortunately, I had no film for the camera with the macro lens, so I took these with a cheap little cameera while holding a magnifier in front of it.
I know you’re on vacation, but I hope you can take a look when you get back….
Signature: George

Hi George,
What a marvelous story.  This beauty is a Giant Stonefly or Salmonfly.  See BugGuide for more information.

Daniel,
Yep: Just after I posted the picture on my facebook, my college daughter (who had been with me and her sisters when we found it) popped-in with:
“Hey I searched online! it looks like a skwala stonefly, also known as the american springfly. the nymphs are aquatic, and they make good fishing bait apparently. and only the females have wings. http://flyfishingtraditions.blogspot.com/2010/01/bugs-yuba-skwala-stone.html
“I figured there weren’t that many large insects in washington with wings and orange bits. google images for the species, then searched that for an informative website. haha
So it’s apparently Skwala americana, and she’s quite a genius.
Actually, we’ve always been a critter family: One of the attractions of this new place was the peculiar superabundance of garter snakes for the kids to play with (makes for smelly laundary though). I regularly make mud for the daubers when it’s dry, and keep Polistes as pets (ask me about it sometime); the girls like to feed them, and bumbles, beetles, butterflies and whatever else will take it, with sugar-on-the-finger. Makes for good memories and pictures. I was surprized the stonefly so avidly took sugar syrup; I always thought the adults of such things were ephemeral, non-feeding.
I have quite a few pictures, and many more stories, about my childhood, adulthood, and THEIR childhood adventures with insects and other wildlife; I should write a book.
BTW, I appreciate your site: it’s a useful service, of more value than you realize. Scientists everywhere (and you do indeed qualify) need to do public outreach. Here is a discussion on the topic by a prominent and controversial scientist, famous for his obstreperousness: http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2011/04/my_cunning_plan_has_worked.php#comments
Much Thanks,
George

Thanks for the followup and kind compliment George.

Letter 6 – Giant Stonefly

Dobsonfly or not?
April 20, 2010
Hello there,
This insect was discovered in the woods, near a creek, Port Moody, BC, several days ago. It resembles a Dobsonfly except has orangy-red colouring, anal cerci, no pinchers, and wings are held flat (not roof like) against its body. It is 52mm in length. Is it a Dobsonfly?
thanks very much for your help, Leigh S.
Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada

Hi Leigh,
Your observations are quite astute.  This is not a Dobsonfly.  It is a Giant Stonefly.  You may read more about Giant Stoneflies in the genus Pteronarcys, also known as Salmonflies, on Bugguide.

Letter 7 – Mystery Insect: Ground Beetle Larva

what the heck is this beastly little creature?
January 7, 2010
Hi,
Last year (late summer or early fall) I found this little guy under a log in central Oklahoma. There were lots of dead leaves scattered around, and the soil was fairly damp. He had two orange and black “tails” sticking out of his long, slender abdomen. His abdomen and thorax were both black, but his head was a yellowish-orange. He had fearsome looking mandibles, and could run pretty fast (which made photographing him difficult). He looked like some sort of larva, but I have absolutely no idea what he was. Thanks for any help you can provide.
Josh Kouri

Hi Josh,
Our best guess is an immature Stonefly, but we thought they were aquatic.  We will try to contact Eric Eaton to get assistance.

Ed. Note: Typically, we do not post comments in the main body of a posting, but in this case, we believe it is warranted.  The following comment was approved.

Prognathous mandibles, long urogomphi…looks like some sort of beetle larva to me. Probably a ground beetle (Family Carabidae), the two tarsal claws give it away.  There are no terrestrial stonefly larvae that I know of.

Update from Eric Eaton
Hi, Daniel:
Definitely a ground beetle larva, likely this one:
http://bugguide.net/node/view/293203
in the genus Galerita at least.  Neat find!
Eric

Letter 8 – Common Stonefly

Subject: Not a termite I hope, but what is it?
Location: Central Maryland, USA
June 20, 2012 10:48 pm
This crawled/flew in my daughter’s drink cup in our kitchen. We’ve not seen anything like it before. It doesn’t look like any termite photos we’ve found, but we’d like to be sure and know what it really is. It’s dying in these photos so the legs are bending. It was about 5/8” long.
Signature: Rik

Hi Rik,
While we are not certain of the species, this Common Stonefly looks very much like the photo of Perlesta nelsoni that is posted on BugGuide.  According to BugGuide, they are also called Golden Stoneflies.  Stoneflies are benign creatures and you have nothing to fear from them.

Letter 9 – Small Winter Stoneflies

Subject: UFO
Location: Massachusetts
May 16, 2017 1:44 pm
Found these crawling all over my house today. I live just south of Boston. There were tons of them, about a half inch long excluding antennae.
Signature: Hoping it’s harmless

Dear Hoping it’s harmless,
It is.  This is a Small Winter Stonefly in the family Capniidae.  According to BugGuide:  “adults emerge from November to June (most common in winter and early spring).”  Do you live near a stream?  According to BugGuide:  “nymphs beneath rocks and gravel on the bottom of streams and rivers; adults often seen on snow, or resting on concrete bridges over streams.”  Since they are only found near very clean, well oxygenated water, their presence is a sign that the local water is not polluted.

Letter 10 – Alderfly not Stonefly

UK fly
Hi,
Would you be kind enough to identify this UK fly? I find it common on freshwater lakes here in the UK whilst fishing. They are very tame and slow moving.
Lee.

Hi Lee,
We thought this was a Stonefly, but Eric Eaton set us straight. He wrote: “The stonefly is actually an alderfly, family Sialidae, order Megaloptera (or Neuroptera, depending on which authority you consult). ” Alderfliesflies have aquatic larvae.

(05/15/2007) UK stonefly ID question
I was looking at you page this morning and had a question about the picture of the possible UK stonefly. It looks alot like an alderfly to me. Just thought I would let you know what I thought it was.
Chad

Letter 11 – Bug of the Month January 2011: Small Winter Stoneflies and Definition of Infestation

Need to Identify
Location: Northeastern Pa.
December 30, 2010 6:50 pm
Mr. Bugman,
We have had an infestation of these bugs since early November. Have no clue what they are and have searched all over online but have not yet found a match. Can you please help us identify them?
Signature: desperate in Pa

Dear desperate,
You have Small Winter Stoneflies in the family Capniidae and we are really looking forward to the opportunity to educate you regarding the complexities of the web of life on our fragile planet and to hopefully nurture an appreciation of your own unique ecosystem in Northeastern Pennsylvania.  We should start with a definition of “infestation” and for that, we are turning to our Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary that accompanies our Encyclopaedia Britannica.  “1:  the act of infesting … :  Plague, annoyance  2:  something that infests:  swarm … 3:  the state of being infested esp. with metazoan parasites in or on an animal or plant body.”  The dictionary goes on to define “infest” as “1 archaic:  to attack or harass persistently :  worry, annoy  2a:  to visit persistently or in large numbers  :  overrun, haunt …  b:  to live in or on as a parasite –used esp. f metazoan parasites of animals.”  At any rate, “infestation” has a negative connotation and though you may not understand how these Small Winter Stoneflies play a part in your ecosystem, and though you may be annoyed with their presence, they do not constitute an infestation.  They will not harm you, your pets, your home or its furnishings.
According to BugGuide, the “family is distributed throughout much of North America but many species have restricted geographic ranges, and are endemic to relatively small areas.”  That means that you might have a unique species that is endangered.  The fact that there were enough individuals to spark your concern is indicative of a healthy population.  Additionally, Stoneflies have aquatic larvae that cannot survive in polluted waters.  The presence of a large quantity of adult Small Winter Stoneflies in your area is indicative of a nearby pure water supply.  A healthy population of Stoneflies are actually an indicator that there is a healthy and diverse ecosystem in your area.  This past March, we selected Winter Stoneflies as our Bug of the Month and that resulted in a request from the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.
Because we feel so strongly about the preservation of the environment as well as promoting an appreciation of the lower beasts, we are selecting your letter and images as our featured Bug of the Month for January 2011 even though Winter Stoneflies have occupied that position of distinction on our website in the past.

I so appreciate your e-mail and sharing of knowledge on these Small Winter Stoneflies.  I understand that ‘infestation’ has a negative connotation and I didn’t mean for it to come across as negative although they are “visiting persistently and in large numbers” and are often falling from the ceiling  of our basement or siding of our house onto our bodies or into our hair.  The backside of our house is literally covered in them and you can’t come in the door without a few making their way in as well.  Nonetheless, I’m very happy to learn that they are not harmful to us, our pets, or our home. We do have a seasonal creek that runs back behind our house, so I’m wondering if that is the source of “unpolluted” water they are being attracted to?
Again, thank you for your time in helping us to identify this insect and learn more about them! We’ll tread more carefully from here on out…
The Becks in Pa.

The creek sounds exactly like the habitat needed for the larvae to mature in an aquatic environment.  Stoneflies live in running water, not standing water.

Letter 12 – Common Stonefly

dobson-fly? With Orange neck?
Found on the side of a building by the New Brunswick/Maine border. After looking at your site I believe this might be a type of Dobson Fly, cigar shaped body, 4 inches in length, clear wings. There does not appear to be mandibles and unlike the pictures on your website this one has a flourescent orange neck. Hoping you can open the attachments! Same one in both pics! Sorry about the poor quality!

This is a Common Stonefly in the family Perlidae. BugGuide has images, including one with a ruler showing the size 4 inches, and one showing the orange color of the neck, and they identify the genus as Perlesta or perhaps Pteronarcys pictetii. While we can’t exactly confirm the genus or species, we are confident this is a Common Stonefly.

Letter 13 – Common Stonefly

another pic of a fishfly
Here’s another great pic of a fishfly. I put something on a park bench concealed from a rainstorm allowing this "little" guy to get out of the rainstorm.
Karen MacEwan

Hi Karen,
This is not a Fishfly. It is a common Stonefly in the family Perlidae. We just spent a bit of time adjusting the contrast and sharpening a far inferior image of a Common Stonefly to post because we opened that letter first. Though we don’t really feel the need to have two Common Stonefly images on our homepage at once, you image is so lovely we cannot resist the temptation to do so. Your telephone area code (which we are not posting) indicates you are from the Minneapolis, Minnesota area.

Letter 14 – Common Stonefly

FishFly or Female Dobson Fly?
Hey Bug Man,
You have a ton of Dobson flies on your site, but I’m still not convinced that this is one because of the lack of mandibles (or else this one’s are puny). It also doesn’t have the trademark feathered antennae of a fishfly. The orange accents were also interesting. I found this 3 inch specimen on a tree in my backyard in Ashburn, Virginia on April 26. I live 100 yards from a stream and the weather has given us several 80 degree days for the first time this year. Thanks for the great compilation of excellent photos on your site.
Joe

Hi Joe,
This is a Common Stonefly in the family Perlidae.

Letter 15 – Common Stonefly Naiad

stonefly
Hey,
What kind of stonefly is this? He’s about an inch and a half. I caught him in february in central pennsylvania. I put him in rubbing alchohol for long term studying and he didn’t die untill the next day. Thats one tough stone. Please email me back when you get a chance. Aquatic insects are fantastic!!!
Stephen

Hi Stephen,
This is a Common Stonefly Naiad in the Family Perlidae.

Letter 16 – Female Stonefly with eggs

Subject: what insect is this?
Location: Baltimore County, MD
June 30, 2013 3:58 pm
We live near a pond in Maryland. We have been here for 4 years and have not seen this insect until now. They came out of nowhere and swarmed around the lights and the windows anywhere there was light. What is it? Thanks.
Signature: ravensfan

Dear ravensfan,
This is a female Stonefly in the order Plecoptera, and she is carrying about her egg mass.  Soneflies have aquatic larvae known as naiads, so the nearby pond is likely a factor in the sudden appearance.  Here is a similar photo from BugGuide.  The BugGuide page for the order indicates:  “females deposit several egg masses, which together may total more than 1,000 eggs, by flying over water or occasionally by crawling up to the water; some nymphs are known to molt 12-36 times, and require one to three years to mature; full-grown nymphs leave the water, cling to shoreline vegetation and debris, and molt into the adult stage” and “nymphs of most spp. develop in cool, well-oxygenated water and do not tolerate pollution; therefore, their presence is an indicator of good water quality, and their absence in areas where they previously occurred may indicate pollution.”

Letter 17 – Giant Stonefly

Hello! Bug from Hell’s Canyon Oregon here!
Beautiful laced wings on this bug we saw at Indian Crossing campground on the Imnaha river, Hells Canyon national recreation area on the border of Oregon and Idaho. It was in a forested area. Any ideas? Love the site!!!!! Thanks!
Justin Friedman

Hi Justin,
This is a Giant Stonefly. BugGuide has a matching photo, but does not identify the species. They only identify it to the family level, Pteronarcyidae.

Letter 18 – Giant Stonefly

not a grasshopper or mayfly?
What the heck is this? I live in Alberta Canada, and can’t for the life of me figure out what this is!
Thanks in advance!
Chris

Hi Chris,
This is a Giant Stonefly in the family Pteronarcyidae. They are sometimes called Salmonflies. The only way we could get your photos on our homepage was to photograph them with a digital camera on the computer screen from the email as we were not able to open the png file. Hence the quality is rather poor.

Letter 19 – Giant Stonefly

Bugs of VT
I have photos of some insects that were taken in Southern Vt. near Albany, NY. I didn’t take the photos but I’m supposed to name them. I hope you can help. 2 Photos Attached. Sincerely, mrsvgrant

Hi Mrs V Grant,
Your one photo shows a Stink Bug or Shield Bug in the family Pentatomidae. The other insect, and the one we are interested in posting, is a fabulous photo of a Giant Stonefly in the family Pteronarcyidae which includes the giant salmonflies famous among flyfishers. The giant stonefly of the East and Midwest can be either Pteronarcys dorsata or Pteronarcys picteti. Sadly, we have not been able to determine which species you have as internet information is sketchy. More information can be found on the American Stonefly Page which has an image that matches yours but is not correctly identified. The range map of P. dorsata includes many areas around Vermont, though Vermont is not listed. P. pictetii ranges relatively far from Vermont, being concentrated in the Midwest. By process of elimination, we believe you have Pteronarcys dorsata.

Letter 20 – Giant Stonefly

Odd Spokane Resident
Sat, Dec 20, 2008 at 10:12 PM
Odd Spokane Resident
While tilling a flower bed this last summer (May/June), my wife found this bug under a top covering of pine needles. I have never seen anything like this.
It has a beautiful black with orange outlines. Its wings are huge!
Spencer Morley
Spokane, WA, USA

Hi Spencer,
This is a Giant Stonefly in the family Pteronarcyidae.  According to information posted to BugGuide, we believe this is probably a California Salmonfly, Pteronarcys californica .  BugGuide indicates:  “The California Salmonfly ( Pteronarcys californica ) is common in western United States and southwestern Canada; it is an important food of trout and salmon, and a favorite bait of anglers.”   These aquatic insects are often attracted to lights.

Letter 21 – Giant Stonefly

7th grade river walk this afternoon, …
Wed, Jun 3, 2009 at 3:22 PM
Left us wondering “who” this is. It was stationary, hanging onto the side of a small tree, 15 feet from the river that runs behind our school in VT. It looked to be 2 – 2.5 inches long.
Lisa
North Central VT, a couple of miles from the base of Mt Mansfield.

Hi Lisa,
This is a Giant Stonefly in the family Pteronarcyidae.  The aquatic nymphs have gills and are found in streams and rivers and they eat aquatic vegetation.  We recently received an ID request that we did not post of a nymph, and we are going to try to locate it in the labyrinth of our email inbox.  Adult Giant Stoneflies do not feed.  Fishermen are fond of Giant Stoneflies as bait for trout and other freshwater fish.  You may learn more about Giant Stoneflies on BugGuide.  We are preparing your letter and photo in advance to post live to our site on Monday at noon since we will be out of the office for a week and not answering any new incoming mail.  We feel an obligation to our regular readership to continue to update on a daily basis in absentia.

Letter 22 – Giant Stonefly

Sawyer?
Location: Windsor, Onatio, Canada
June 14, 2011 11:26 pm
My friend found this bug as it flew into his house when he opened the door. He’s in Windsor, Ontario and it’s late spring/summer time. I’ve looked on google and your site for hours but can’t find anything that has that yellow band or green colour… The best my research could do was narrow it down to possibly be a sawyer or a borer. I’m not sure how big it is, since he posted it to Facebook via is iPhone. Any help?
Signature: Renee

Hi Renee,
Though it has long antennae, this is not a borer nor is it even a beetle.  It is a Giant Stonefly in the genus Pteronarcys which you may verify by viewing this individual on BugGuide.

Letter 23 – Giant Stonefly

No idea what this thing is..
Location: Southern Minnesota
June 20, 2011 1:51 pm
I was pounding a steel post in for my garden fence when I noticed this little friend on the post. It was about 2.5 to 3 inches long and maybe a half inch wide. When I told my sister about, she said she had found the same bug in a tub in the shed a couple days before and let it go in the yard. I left it alone and it eventually was gone. Any idea what it is?
Signature: JWB

Dear JWB,
This marvelous insect is a Giant Stonefly in the genus Pteronarcys.

Letter 24 – Giant Stonefly

Is this a fishfly?
Location: Gardiner, Montana
August 10, 2011 11:35 pm
Dear Daniel~
I give up! I thought this was some kind of fishfly, but I can not find a match anywhere. This photo was taken on a bridge spanning the Yellowstone River in Gardiner, Montana, about three weeks ago. There were many, many of these insects flying across the bridge all at once and down towards the river. When one of them landed on the bridge itself, I snapped this photo. That’s all I could get before it took off again. It was during sunset, late July, just near the northern entrance to Yellowstone. This one was about 2 – 2½ inches long. Thank you!
Signature: Dori Eldridge

Hi Dori,
Though this Giant Stonefly resembles a Fishfly, it is actually in a different and unrelated insect order, though both have aquatic larvae and are associated with freshwater bodies of water.

Letter 25 – Giant Stonefly

Subject: mystery insect in VA
Location: Southwest VA
April 18, 2013 8:07 am
Hello!
My dad found this fellow in Virginia. He was unable to identify it and I’m stumped as well. We thought you all might have better luck.
Signature: Kelsey

Dear Kelsey,
This beauty is a Giant Stonefly in the genus Pteronarcys.  You can see BugGuide for additional information.

Letter 26 – Giant Stonefly

Subject: longish wingy forest bug
Location: Mount Rainier National Park, WA, USA
October 26, 2014 10:19 am
Hi, I found this bug in the woods on Mount Rainier near Carbon Glacier in August. What is it? PS love you guys.
Signature: – Haley

Dear Haley,
This is a Stonefly in the order Plecoptera, but we are not certain of the species.  According to BugGuide:  “nymphs occur primarily under stones in cool unpolluted streams; some species occur along rocky shores of cold lakes, in cracks of submerged logs, and debris that accumulates around stones, branches, and water diversion grills.  spring and summer adults may be found resting on stones and logs in the water, or on leaves and trunks of trees and shrubs near water.”

Letter 27 – Giant Stonefly

Subject: Fishfly maybe?
Location: Central PA
May 7, 2015 6:11 am
Found several of these guys at our cottage on the river over the weekend. We haven’t noticed them there before. They look a bit like fishflies, but all had a red band around the neck. Is this a trait that fishflies can have, or a different insect all together?
Signature: Kayla

Dear Kayla,
Your insect is a Giant Stonefly in the genus Pteronarcys, and according to BugGuide they are also called Salmonflies.  Just for fun, here is a link to one of our favorite Giant Stonefly postings.

Letter 28 – Giant Stonefly

Subject: Bug Identification
Location: Upstate South Carolina
April 14, 2016 6:55 pm
Dear bugman,
This lovely creature flew up to me and said hello and I have never seen like it before!
I would love to know what it is so that I can educate myself further 🙂
Thank you mucho,
Best,
Kate
Signature: Keep Learning! -Bugman

Dear Kate,
This is a Giant Stonefly in the genus Pteronarcys, and there are several possible species that are found along the eastern seaboard.  You can browse through the images on BugGuide for comparison.

Letter 29 – Giant Stonefly

Subject:  Identify
Geographic location of the bug:  Virginia
Date: 06/11/2018
Time: 04:05 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Need help figuring out what this is
How you want your letter signed:  William clarke

Dear William,
This is a Giant Stonefly in the genus Pteronarcys and here is a BugGuide image for comparison.  Also known as Salmonflies, Giant Stoneflies have aquatic larvae known as naiads that are found in freshwater streams, so we suspect you live near a creek or river.

Letter 30 – Giant Stonefly from Canada

Subject: Summer bug
Location: Labrador Canada
June 25, 2012 11:22 pm
hi there. I live in Labrador Canada and every summer we get this bug and no one knows what they are. I was hoping you could help identify it.
Thanks
Signature: n/a

Dear n/a,
This is a Giant Stonefly in the genus Pteronarcys and you can compare your individual to this photo from BugGuide.  Stoneflies have aquatic nymphs or naiads, so they are generally found near a source of water.  Having a healthy Stonefly population is an indication that the nearby water is relative pure and pollution free as they cannot tolerate contaminated water.

Letter 31 – Giant Stonefly with Eggs from Canada

Subject: Stonefly?
Location: Maple Ridge, BC, Canada
April 26, 2013 3:02 pm
hi bugman!
This colourful flying insect had a collision with my brother’s mower. I think it’s a Stonefly. The closest match I’ve been able to find is Utaperla gaspesiana.
The eggbundle was attached to the insects abdomen.
Signature: Storm

Dear Storm,
While we agree that this is a Stonefly, we disagree with your species identification.  While the markings on Utaperla gaspesiana as pictured on BugGuide look similar to the markings on your individual, we believe you have a Giant Stonefly in the genus Pteronarcys.  We were most curious about the egg bundle, so we did some research.  We located a similar photo on FlickR with the comment:  “Found this on a screen door, perhaps 100 yards from a brook. Large (2″?) egg-laden female. I think it may be Pteronarcys dorsata. May 28, 2011.”  The photographers, Jerry Schoen took the image in White Oaks, Williamstown, Massachusetts.  That same photo can be found duplicated on numerous other websites including The River’s Calendar.  The Elk River Guiding Company website also has a photo of a Stonefly with Eggs.  You can read more about Giant Stoneflies on BugGuide.

Thank you for submitting your photos.

Letter 32 – Golden Stonefly

Bug photo attached for your collection if wanted
Came across your neat site while searching for stonefly photos on Google. Found this yesterday as it came out from under my son’s riding mower as we pushed it into the back yard to work on it. Been told it’s a Golden stonefly. Thought you might want it for your photo collection. We’re in southwest Virginia.
Dick & Jane

Hi Dick and Jane,
Thanks for sending your image. According to BugGuide, Golden Stoneflies or Common Stoneflies are in the family Perlidae.

Letter 33 – Mating Stoneflies

Subject:  Winter stonefly?
Geographic location of the bug:  Southwestern Pennsylvania
Date: 03/03/2021
Time: 05:54 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hello, thank you for all the work you do.  It is truly helpful.  I took this picture in SW Pennsylvania on March 3rd next to a fast-moving stream.  Is this a mating pair of winter stoneflies?  Any help would be appreciated.  Thank you so much.
How you want your letter signed:  Adam

Thanks for your kind words Adam.  When you sent in this request over a month ago, Daniel had not returned to responding to identification requests, a hiatus he took for about a year.  Today was a slow request day so Daniel went back through unanswered mail and found your request.  These are definitely Stoneflies in the order Plecoptera and they do appear to be engaged in some sort of activity related to mating.  We cannot conclusively provide you with a family or species.

Letter 34 – Small Winter Stonefly

What is this thing?
Location: Southeastern PA
March 15, 2012 11:27 am
I’ve found these bugs in and around my home the past few months. They’re about the size of a grain of rice. I think they have wings, although I’ve never seen them fly. It looks kind of like a cross between a cricket and a silverfish. Or maybe a centipede with only 6 legs. Any help you can give in identifying them would be great. Thanks!
Signature: Curious

Dear Curious,
This is a Winter Stonefly, a harmless creature that can only be found in areas that have clean, unpolluted streams.  We get numerous requests to identify Winter Stoneflies from Pennsylvania.  We suspect there are isolated populations that may have diversified into distinct species in many parts of the Appalachian Mountains.

Letter 35 – Small Winter Stonefly

Subject: help with this bug
Location: Oakville , Ontario , Canada
February 17, 2016 9:41 am
I saw many of these bugs in the snow , sorry this is not the best of photos , this one had blue hue on its lower body , a couple of others had a brown hue , may be male , female , they were abut one centimetre in length , never seen them before , I was close to water in the harbour
Signature: Stewart

Dear Stewart,
Congratulations on your Snowfly or Small Winter Stonefly sighting.  Small Winter Snowflies are in the family Capniidae, and the exact genus and species might be difficult to identify conclusively and according to BugGuide:  “many species are restricted to relatively small areas.”  BugGuide also indicates:  “nymphs [are found] beneath rocks and gravel on the bottom of streams and rivers; adults often seen on snow, or resting on concrete bridges over streams.”  They cannot survive in polluted conditions, so the presence of Snowflies is an indication that the water in the area is pure.  The blue coloration in your individual is quite interesting and unnatural looking, resembling a digital imaging aberration much more than it does the natural coloration of any Snowfly image we have seen.  BugGuide also has many images of Snowflies in the snow.

Letter 36 – Some images of Bait?

Stonefly and Hellgrammite
I noticed that on your website that you did not have any pictures of the Common Stonefly adult or a Dobsonfly Larvae. I have included a picture of each for your records.
Chad

Stonefly	Hellgrammites

Hi Chad,
Thanks for the images. You must be a fisherman with all those Hellgrammites for bait. We actually have a Hellgrammite page seperate from our Dobsonfly page. The Common Stonefly looks like one of the Green-Winged Stoneflies in the Family Isoperlidae.

Letter 37 – Stone Fly Exuvia

Subject: Can you help me Id?
Location: Honesdale, PA (Northeastern, PA)
April 8, 2017 6:56 pm
Hello,
I moved to northeastern PA in December. Our snow finally melted and I decided to go out to explore today. I found a shell of a bug that I can’t seem to find an identity for. It looks like it had a stinger on the end. I haven’t successfully found what this bug may have been.
Please help!
Thank you!
Signature: Laura

Please provide additional information.  What size and what type of habitat?