TheChronicFlyfisher.com
Trout Food
The Chironomid Lifecycle
Chironomid Larvae or Bloodworms
Bloodworms are the larval stage of the chironomid. The larvae burrow tubes in the soft sediment areas of the lake bottom. Larvae feed on decaying plant matter and pupate as the water temperature increases in the spring and summer. |
Chironomid Pupae
The larvae having transformed into pupae free themselves from their protective tube in the sediment. The pupae's wiggling ascend to the surface is aided by oxygen accumulated in their body segmentations. Trout key in on the pupae during their ascent from the lake bottom to the surface. |
Upon reaching the surface the pupa will emerge from its pupal shuck.
When the wings of the adult fly have dried it will fly off to mate and lay eggs. The chironomid emergence feeds trout, birds, bats and other insects. |
Photos and Text by Lewis Johnson, TheChronicFlyfisher.com ©2009
