To trout, caddisflies are food. To fly fishermen, caddisflies, or a close imitation, are irresistible lures. But to Ben Stoudt, caddisflies thousands of them are "artists" hard at work on a stunning array of natural "beads" that he and his wife, Kathy, turn into jewelry.

     Ben, an associate professor and director of environmental studies at Wheeling Jesuit University, has been studying caddisflies since his graduate school days 20 years ago at Virginia Polytechnic University. What started as a research obsession has turned into a marketable hobby a beautiful blending of science and art, business and pleasure.

     "I consider caddisflies keystone species," Ben asserts. "They're the most important aquatic species nationally," he adds, explaining that as larvae, some 200 caddisfly species eat leaf litter in streams, converting large particles to small particles, which can then be washed downstream. As they ingest leaves, they use about 20 percent for nutrition and excrete the remaining 80 percent as waste. This process feeds the downstream ecosystem, he explains.

     But it's the caddisfly's case-building behavior that really has him and Kathy hooked.

     In its larval stages, the caddisfly lives in a case built from sand, stream gravel, tiny sticks, or plant debris. The building material, which varies from species to species, is cemented together by silk the animal spins. Caddisflies go through five larval molts in the same case. They just cement more material to the case each time to accommodate their larger size.

     After the fifth molt to the pre-adult, or pupal stage, the caddisfly leaves its case and swims to the side of a stream, where it will molt one last time into a winged adult.

     Several of the caddisfly species build spiral, snail-shaped cases, but most build tubular cases. These tubular cases look like elongated beads. And that's where the jewelry making comes in.

     According to Ben, two events triggered the idea for the jewelry- making business. First, he purchased some earrings for Kathy made out of natural cases. Then, a fly fisherman told Kathy that in Montana, he'd find an occasional caddisfly case with bits of garnet in it.

     "From there, we just put it all together," Ben says. "If we could get them to build with the material that we wanted them to build with, we could produce beautiful and unique jewelry."

     It took two and a half years and six experiments, but the Stoudts finally came up with a good caddisfly case made out of colored aquarium gravel. On the very next experiment, they got 99 good cases from 100 caddisflies.

     "It dawned on us that we really had something here," says Kathy.

     Then it was on to turquoise as a building material. Ben bought a turquoise necklace, smashed it, and put it in the simulated stream where he kept his larval caddisflies. Sure enough, the insects used the turquoise.

     "The cases weren't pretty because they weren't polished or anything," Ben admits. "And they looked chunky. But we sold them."

     From there, Ben and Kathy had to learn about stone polishers, gem stones, epoxy, and more. At present, they supply their case-building caddisflies with red jasper, peridot, malachite, gold nuggets, coal, sodalite, garnet, lapis, galena, abalone shell, and gemstones from all over the world. When the caddisflies emerge as adults, the Stoudts collect the discarded cases to make necklaces, earrings, pins, tie holders, and bracelets.

     The Stoudt's garage is a veritable caddisfly case factory. Ben has perfected a technique for simulating a stream environment in his garage that sustains thousands of the insects. His "stream" is a series of 24 tanks, or plastic tubs, connected with PVC pipe. He doesn't use any type of cleanser, chlorine or pesticides in the stream, only jury-rigged filters made of plastic scrub pads.

     This "stream," like the case-building process, is in itself an exceptional feat.

     "When we first started, I couldn't keep these guys for two weeks without mortalities, and now I get about 80 percent survival rate over six months," says Ben. He notes that under normal lab conditions, the mortality rate is 10 percent per week.

     Unfortunately, the Stoudts' caddisfly population is not self-sustaining, because the insects will not breed in captivity. In nature, the adults mate in flights over water. Then, the female lays hundreds of eggs on submerged rocks or plants.

     Every year, between January and March, Ben collects small larvae from West Virginia headwater streams, where they live by the billions. (He notes with chagrin that these ecologically critical headwater streams are disappearing at an alarming rate, due to human activities such as mountain-top removal and road building.) He works primarily with the species Pycnopsyche gentilis.

     Back home in the simulated stream, the caddisfly larvae eat leaves that Ben has leached to remove the tanins (growth inhibitors) and inoculated with stream foam (aquatic hypho mycetis fungi) to maintain insect health. As he explains, "The leaf is the cracker, and the fungi is the peanut butter."

     Each of the 24 plastic tubs comprising the "stream" contains several hundred caddisfly larvae at work building cases of whatever gemstone Ben and Kathy have designated for that tub.

     "I can't wait until these guys emerge," says Ben, pointing to a tub where his critters are combining lapis and cubic zirconium in their cases. Interestingly, they're building with the facet side inward and the point outward. "That's really original," Ben notes. "That one's going to end up in the Smithsonian or something."

     Ben's enthusiasm is contagious as he moves from tub to tub, describing what the finished product will look like and fishing through the water to find samples. He pulls out an almost-completed case of WVU colors deep blue lapis and gold nuggets. "This combination is really popular."

     Some tubs contain a single gemstone, while others contain combinations. Ben polishes and grinds his own stones to the size the insects prefer 1/4 to 5 mm. in size.

     Six months after case-building begins, the caddisflies leave their cases and emerge in August or September as adults.

     "We just open the windows and let them go," Ben reports.

     Then the jewelry-making begins. After the cases are collected, Ben fills them with epoxy (he mixes his own) to make them strong. "We unconditionally guarantee all our cases." The cases intended for bracelets are dipped repeatedly in glaze. The end result is thousands of natural beads ready for stringing. "There's nothing else like them in the jewelry world."

     Then Kathy takes over. It's her job to string the beads and design and produce the finished pieces. As president of the enterprise, which is known as Wildscape, she runs the business full-time from home.

     "I like getting into the market end, talking to people and getting them excited about my product," says Kathy. "Each piece is one of a kind." Her latest outlets for the jewelry are fly fishing shops around the country.

     Since they started producing the jewelry three years ago, the Stoudts have been exhibiting and selling at shows around the state and beyond. Their exhibit includes a small stream environment where people can actually watch the caddisflies at work.

     People are as interested in the scientific accomplishment as the artistic one, Ben notes. "The animals are fascinating to watch as they pick up stones and flip them around until they fit just right."

     Ben also notes with satisfaction that many scientists and professional biologists visit their booths. "We are taken very seriously by the academic community, and that's more rewarding than anything."

     In response to interest demonstrated by teachers, school groups, and the general public, Ben and Kathy are currently planning a small-budget video on caddisflies for the educational market.

     To reach the Stoudts or inquire about their jewelry, call them at 304/233-1571 or visit their web site at www.wildscape.com.

Linda Shalaway teaches Honors English at Cameron High School in Marshall County, where she was named Teacher of the Year 1998-1999.