Very interesting article. I will be going back to Ohio to "work" on my
brother's charter boat service for the entire month of August. His charter
boat is moored in Port Clinton, Ohio. He fishes Lake Erie and journey's
into Canadian waters to fish for "smallies" and walleyes there as well as in
American waters around the Bass Islands. Put-In-Bay, located on South Bass
Island, was just in the news do to a death, and many injuries that occurred
when a roof and floor gave way in an old winery located on the Island. I
grew up in that area and it will be fun to return. I will bring a 7 wt and
try for smallmouths in 10-15 ft. of water. The mayfly that is so prolific
is the Michigan May, or the Hexeginia May and thus the term, Hex hatch. It
is very large and the walleye feed on the "wigglers". These are the
burrowing nymphs from this mayfly and the walleye will be stuffed with them
and very difficult to catch when these guys are present. The adults hatch
out, for the most part, after dark. Jere
----- Original Message -----
From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Thursday, July 06, 2000 1:05 PM
Subject: big mayfly hatch
> Did any of the AOL list members or otherwise, catch this story off the AP
wire. Encouraging at least, they call it a nusence, I call it refreshing.
>
>
> Mayflies Making Life Miserable
> The Associated Press
> By JOHN SEEWER PORT CLINTON, Ohio (AP)
>
> - They land in
> your hair and stick to your clothes. Like creatures out of a horror
movie,
> millions of mayflies are rising again out of Lake Erie and swarming its
> shoreline. Towns in Ohio, Michigan and Canada are blanketed with the
> flying insects that cling to windows, fast-food signs, cars - just about
> anything. They also crunch underfoot. ``It's like running over Rice
> Krispies,'' said car dealer Troy Maxwell. ``You can hear them popping.''
It
> may be little consolation to shoreline residents, but the mayflies are a
> sign of a healthier Lake Erie. They were killed off from the 1950s
through
> the 1980s by high pollution levels that reduced oxygen in the lake. Now
> that the lake is cleaner, the mayfly has made a comeback. They began
> returning along western Lake Erie in 1996. The insects have a life
> expectancy of one or two days, sticking around just long enough to
> reproduce. A female mayfly can lay up to 8,000 eggs. The invasion
> begins in June and usually ends within a month. Mayflies are about an
> inch or two long with paper-thin wings and big, beady eyes. Despite their
> appearance, they don't bite. ``They're like snowflakes almost, they're
all
> different,'' said Laurie Eberle, Port Clinton's administrative assistant.
The
> mayflies are generally found in the shallow areas of western Lake Erie
> and its shores. Winds on the lake usually push them toward Ohio's
> shoreline, but this year the winds have been blowing toward Canada.
> Cities in Ontario were covered with mayflies earlier in June. Now the
> pests are coming back to Ohio. Port Clinton, halfway between Toledo
> and Cleveland, is popular with boaters, sunbathers and anglers. In early
> summer, though, out-of-town visitors are understandably repulsed.
> ``Everywhere you go is just full of them,'' Frieda Schmuki said as she
> tried to enjoy a scoop of vanilla ice cream. ``I'm trying to watch what
I'm
> eating.'' Seconds later she was plucking a mayfly out of her
> granddaughter's hair. ``Yucky!'' yelled 5-year-old Laura. Most residents
> have learned to cope, knowing to close their doors - and their mouths.
> Porch lights, street lamps, and advertising signs are turned off at night
to
> avoid attracting swarms. Restaurants use leaf-blowers and snow shovels
> to clear sidewalks. One recent hatch left windows at a Burger King
> covered with mayflies. Some even got inside and were hanging from the
> ceiling. ``They're like shades,'' said restaurant manager Luanne Keller.
> ``It's not appetizing.'' Others don't bother cleaning up. ``We just leave
> them be,'' said Carrie Smith, a gas station employee. ``Because there's
> just more coming.''
>
>
