Fly Fishing: Entomology & The Cat

I left the house at 7pm intending to run an errand. I noticed a big, beautiful mayfly dun on my other car. I snapped a few pics and departed, figuring it would be gone when I returned. And, so it was, kind of. I returned to find the shuck in place of the dun. Now, I didn’t get a good enough look at the time to see what was totally going on when I originally left. So now, I gently secured the shuck with the intent of photographing it. I went to the front door and opened it and out jets Penelope the House Cat. Shoot it was 0845pm and almost dark. I chased after the cat and eventually removed her from beneath my rig. Hmmm….the shuck was destroyed in the pursuit of the cat! So much for my entomological studies…at least for tonight. What is very fascinating, for me, is that there is only the smallest little spring behind my house. So, was I watching a Dun prior to the emergence of a Spinner or…….

Fly Tying Tutorials: Mayfly Emerger

IMPROVED SPARKLE DUN EMERGER

This link provides a nice step by step (s-b-s) tutorial for the sparkle dun emerger with an additional touch or two. The pupa hook is used to drop the tail end of the pattern into or through the ‘film’ thereby placing the Zelon/Partridge beneath the surface like an emerging mayfly’s trailing nymphal shuck. The deer hair comparadun wing and dubbing help support the thorax & wing above the surface like an emerging mayfly dun, almost out of the nymphal shuck/casing. I cannot attribute the nice tutorial beyond ‘Mike T (786)’   

Fly Tying: Egg Sacs (Female Dun or Spinner?)

In the mayfly pattern below, I wound cream colored (bleached) peacock herl for the abdomen/thorax. I then used a black permanent marker to mottle the body save the rear area, which I wanted to represent the egg sac of a female. A female what? Note the wing is dark as well, touched up with the same permanent marker on the antron post.

But, if I am not mistaken, a female preparing to lay eggs has already progressed through the hatch (dun, darker wing phase) to the spinner phase (mated, wing clear/glassine, preparing to lay eggs and go spent on the water). So, my wing color, if attention to detail is important, is the wrong color. 

Now, in this tie, the wing was not touched up but remains clear/white to better represent the spinner wing. A spent spinner wing is not upright, but rather outstretched to the sides, almost airplane wing style. This pattern is more of the egg laying female setting down upon the water to lay/deposit eggs then try to lift off. 

Hooks: Size 14, dry fly hook; thread 14/0 black Sheer; tail is microfibbets; abdomen/thorax is Nature’s Spirit dyed/bleached peacock herls; hackle ginger dry fly quality; wing post is white antron yarn. (Here is a very nice post re slender parachutes and variations..nice S-B-S at The Fishing Gene)   Paracaddis at the Fishing Gene, also has this very good video tutorial on how to tie his Parachute style Mayfly.

PHILIP ROWLEY WITH EXCELLENT MAYFLY + INFO