Trout Diet

So, now let's take a look at the larval stage of the Mayfly.  Since most fish will do their feeding subsurface, its important to have a nice supply of larval nymphs in your fly box. The two flies that I use the most to represent mayflies are the Gold Ribbed Hare's Ear and the Pheasant Tail.  It can be argued that neither of these nymph patterns specifically imitate a mayfly larva, but are more of a searching nymph.  Although it is true that neither are specific copies of a mayfly larva, they are both killer in the water.  Like the dry flies I recommended, you're gonna have a tough time finding fly fishermen who don't keep a range in size of both of these nymphs in their arsenal.

The Hare's Ear can be weighted or unweighted.  I have several with and without beads.  As a matter of fact, I recommend trying a combination with and without bead heads and flashbacks.  Sometimes the flash and/or the bead seems to get me more strikes.  Other times, the tradition is the only thing that gets the fish's attention.

The PT (Pheasant Tail) can also have the flashback and/or a bead head.  To be honest, I'm a fan of the flash.  I often add it to the flies I tie.  underwater, trout often mistake the flash for the small bubble that these nymphs use to make their way up the water column.  When Frank Sawyer first tied this fly he was adding a book to the fly fishing bible.  He made great contibutions to the book of Herl, which states, Fish love herl.  Why?  There's a lot of theory out there,  just focus on the fact that it works.  The pheasant tail where this fly gets its name has a very fine herl.  This herl makes up the body of the fly and Peacock herl makes the thorax creating an irresistable morsel for the trout.  Get some!

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