river 'bugs'

Suppose I wanted to learn about all kinds of ‘bugs’ on the Mississippi and St Croix. What’s a good resource get started?

From worms to nymphs to mayflies and zooplankton… And all kind of stuff I know nothing about. Our rivers are crawling with micro species of ‘bugs’ (I’m no biologist !)

I’d like to think a better understanding of such may help add more pieces to the puzzle of finding and catching fish.

As I ponder fishing, the million why’s, I rarely think smaller than bait fish; even though something smaller must drive the bait fish, this driving bait fish predators, etc up the chain.

I feel like I’m leaving the biggest factors out of the equation… The ‘bugs’ and the specifics of each.

So, any resources to read up on local bugs in rivers like Croix/sippi?

Thanks.

One of the most comprehensive resources is “An introduction to the Aquatic Insects of North America” by R.W. Merritt and K.W. Cummins

They are on at least the 3rd edition of this and it is a common book used for aquatic entomology courses.

Another option is “Guide to Aquatic Invertebrates of the Upper Midwest:
Identification Manual for Students, Citizen Monitors, and Aquatic Resource Professionals” by R.W. Bouchard, Jr.

I have also attached a basic guide from West Virginia (but the images used come from the Upper Midwest guide mentioned above), that is a good free reference to identifying common families of aquatic invertebrates.

Attachments:

1. WVSOSAdvanced_MacroGuide-1.pdf
2. WVSOSAdvanced_MacroGuide.pdf

Another idea would be to check out some of the trout fishing resources. Fly fishing for trout and entomology go hand-in-hand. Specific insects may not apply to the Miss/Croix but the families of aquatic insects likely will.
Troutnut.com has an extensive library of mayflies and caddis flies.

I like your thinking Andy! Any piece to the puzzle can only help.

Thanks for the info gents.