Spinner fall
Also called Mayfly spinner fall
A spinner fall is when adult mayflies return to the water to lay eggs, and many end up dying and drifting downstream.
- Group
- Life stages
- Category
- Entomology & forage
- Level
- Intermediate
- Water
- Freshwater
Last updated
What Spinner fall means
After a mayfly emerges and becomes a winged adult, it becomes a dun (subimago), then later molts into a spinner (imago), the fully mature stage that mates and lays eggs. A spinner fall is the period when large numbers of those spinners come back to the river or lake to lay eggs, then end up spent and drifting.
Spinner falls can be brief or last for hours and can occur daily for months, sometimes at dusk and sometimes in the morning, depending on the species and conditions. The insects ride low, with clear wings and a long, slender body, and they tend to collect in slicks and eddies where current concentrates them.
Anglers match a spinner fall with low-riding dry flies tied to imitate spent spinners, usually with outstretched wings. Presentations are usually a dead drift with careful line control, because spent spinners drift nearly motionless but egg-laying spinners may dip and can skitter on the surface.
Why it matters on the water
Spinner falls change feeding behavior. Trout may line up in feeding lanes where the current collects spent adults and feed on them, often with subtle rises.
Knowing the stage helps with fly choice and tippet decisions. Spinner imitations sit flush and get refused if they drag or land heavy, so longer leaders, finer tippet, and drag management matter more than making repeated casts.
Read next
- DunA dun is the newly emerged, winged subimago stage of a mayfly, right after it leaves the water and before it becomes a spinner.
- HatchA hatch is a period when aquatic insects emerge in numbers, often bringing trout into a steady feeding rhythm.
- MayflyA mayfly is a freshwater insect with aquatic nymph stages that trout and other fish eat in every stage of its life cycle, from nymph to dun to spinner.
- SpinnerA spinner is a dry fly that imitates an adult mayfly after it has mated and fallen spent on the water, usually with wings laid flat to the sides.