VIDEO: First big mayfly hatch came Saturday night

Expert says it shows river is healthy

If you haven’t see the mayflies come out in a flurry already, it’s going to happen soon.

There were no Vegas odds on this prediction, but if there were, Mark Steingraeber from the U.S. Fish and Wildflife Service in Onalaska, Wis., would have come out big. 

He predicted the mayflies would begin to hatch this weekend. He was right, the National Weather Service radar showed the first significant hatch late Saturday night at Riverside Park in La Crosse.

Looks like we had a #mayfly hatch near La Crosse this evening. Anyone catch any photos or have reports? pic.twitter.com/vITMhv6w0N

— NWS La Crosse (@NWSLaCrosse) July 3, 2016

What that tells us is the Mississippi River is in good condition.

Steingraeber says a larger hatch is mostly likely to happen by July 12.

And, while the hatch proves the river is in good condition, it just leads to other wildlife prospering.

“They provide a great source of food for many of our songbirds,” Steingraeber said, “and probably provide a great resource to the young birds that are fledging when the parents return with those to the nest.”