Choosing the Right Dry Fly, Wet Fly, Nymph, or Streamer

Fly boxes with interchangable
liners offer the ability to change
types of flies without changing
the fly box.

Flies: (Choosing the Right Fly)

..............................Fly Fishing Yellowstone National Park

Our"Perfect Fly",the
Blue-winged Olive Spinner

You shouldn't select a fly by its
looks rather what it imitates.

The most often asked question in fly-fishing is
"what fly do I use"? Trout in Yellowstone or
anywhere in the World for that matter, do not feed
on feathers, hair and metal hooks. They feed on
insects, crustaceans, fish and other food that is
available in the streams. Often when anglers
select flies they begin to think, act and
sometimes appear to actually believe that fish
recognize and feed on such things as a Royal
Trudes or Adams Mayflies.
Selecting the Right Fly:
When you are selecting a fly to use in Yellowstone
or anywhere else you should first ask yourself
"what are the trout most likely eating".
Hatch Charts:
Print a copy of the hatch chart of the stream
(included within this website) you are fishing and
see what insects should be available for the trout
to eat at the particular time you are fishing. If you
don't see the insects that should be hatching on
the water, in the air or on the banks of the stream,
it doesn't necessarily mean that they are not
there. Are you in the right type of water or section
of the stream for the preferred habitat of that
particular insect? Is it the right time of day for the
hatch, spinner fall or egg ovipositing? Has the
hatch been delayed by cold weather or has it
already ended?
If you don't see a substantial amount of insects
in the air or observe trout feeding on insects on
the surface of the water, then you could rightly
assume that they are eating something below
the surface. This most likely would be pupae or
larvae of aquatic insects, fish or a few other
things found in the water. Bead head hair ear
nymphs would not be one of them. So, your first
choice, if you are interested in catching trout
more than you are casting for them, should be a
nymph, larva or pupa imitation of an aquatic
insect, or maybe a streamer that would imitate a
sculpin or baitfish. If you know how to read a
hatch chart (how to read a hatch chart) then this
would be by far your best clue as what fly to use.
Examine the Water:
If you don't have a hatch chart, or you don't see
the insects shown on the hatch chart, then
carefully examine the bottom of the stream and
observe what insects you find in abundance.
Remember that mayfly swimmer type nymphs
(such as blue-winged olives) are going to spook
like minnows and are difficult to see. Clinger
nymphs stay hidden down between and below
the rocks on the bottom and are usually present
although you don't see them. Many of the insects
that trout feed on such as midge larvae and
pupae, small mayfly nymphs, and small caddisfly
larvae and pupae are very difficult to observe.
In many streams, anglers would pick up rocks
from the stream bed and observe the insects that
attach to them.
Check the surface of the water for emerging
mayfly nymphs or caddisfly pupae. The small
ones are very difficult to see. The best way would
be to use a small skim net to catch whatever is in
the surface film. Check the surface for spinners.
They are difficult to see because they usually fall
in low light situations and float flat on the surface
or in the surface skim.
Check the Banks:
Don't fail to check the banks, trees, bushes and
grass. Are there any terrestrial insects such as
hoppers, ants, beetles, etc., there in abundance?
By the way, do not harm any of these insects or
pupae and larvae found in the water and do not
collect them. It is illegal and does not do the
stream, fish or animals any good to do so.
No Hatch to Match:
Most of the time you are not going to observe
insects very easily. Most of the time they are not
any hatches underway. The "no hatch to match"
condition is common. It would not be common for
you to find no insects in the water. If it is late
summer or during the fall season, you will not
find as many large ones as you would in June for
example, but you should still find plenty. Midge
larvae and pupae are not very visible but most
likely they are there. Don't forget or overlook them.
They are a very important part of the diet of the
trout in Yellowstone. If you don't find any aquatic
insects, then you better get out of there and find
some place trout can exist. If there is no food,
there are no trout in the stream you are fishing.
That is a fact.
The key is to use a fly that matches the larva or
pupae stage of what the hatch chart shows; or to
match the most abundant insect you can find on
the stream or in the water that trout may feed on -
with a fly.
Matching the Hatch:
If you are lucky and you observe mayflies,
midges, stoneflies or caddisflies hatching, then
match the appropriate stage of life of that insect
with a fly - an emerger, dun or adult, or spinner/.
Choose the fly by first matching the size, then
shape and finally shade of color of the natural at
the stage of life you are attempting to imitate.
Remember, choosing the right fly is only a part of
it.
Matching the Behavior of the Insect:
More importantly, you should match the behavior
of that particular insect or other trout food. Your fly
must not only look like the natural, it must act like
the natural.
This gets down to the presentation of the fly.
Presentation is almost always more important
than how well the fly matches the natural.
In order for you to make the proper presentation
of any insect at its various stages of life, it is
necessary that you know how it behaves. This
means where it lives in the nymphal stage of life;
when it is available to the trout; how it emerges;
when, where and how the adult stages of the
insect are subject to being eaten by trout; when,
where and how the females deposit their eggs;
and when, where and how they die.
If caddisflies dive to deposit their eggs on the
bottom, you need to know it and how to imitate
that behavior. If mayflies emerge on the bottom of
the stream rather than the surface, you need to
know it and how to imitate it. These are examples
of numerous activities that you should be familiar
with if you are going to successfully imitate
aquatic insects. If you don't, you are relying on
pure luck to catch trout rather than knowledge.
Recommended Flies:
For each insect or trout food item, we
recommend two flies. The first flies we
recommend are those that can be purchased
commercially which are flies that we have found
to be common and available at most fly shops
and outfitters. There may be a more exact
imitation than the one we recommend but not
readily available on a wide scale basis. We are
not implying that our recommendations are
always the best flies, although they may well be.
We are implying only that they are normally
adequate imitations that can be easily acquired.
Perfect Flies:
The “Perfect Flies” we are recommending, for
those that tie flies, are our own patterns. By
“perfect fly”, we simply mean one that catches
fish. The name “Perfect Fly” is not meant to imply
that they are perfect in reality. The patterns are
usually, as most patterns are, modifications of
other very successful patterns but in many cases,
with colors and materials that more accurately
imitate the natural.
Fly Color:
Since the color of insects sometimes vary from
stream to stream, you should always try to verify
the match as best you can by comparing your fly
with the natural found on the stream. You will
notice that our patterns generally fall somewhere
in between very realistic imitations and
impressionistic imitations. By realistic, we do not
mean to imply that every leg, eye, and detail is
imitated to perfection, only that they resemble the
natural.
Difficulty in Tying and Fishing:
The Perfect Fly patterns are not necessarily the
easiest flies to tie and in some cases, they may
not be as durable as other flies. Some patterns,
especially those utilizing CDC feathers, are
designed to be presented in smooth flowing
water where the insects are most likely to be
found and should not be presented in rough,
turbulent water. If you are having problems with
the fly floating correctly or seeing it well, it may be
that you are fishing it incorrectly or in the wrong
types of water.

Copyright 2007 James Marsh

Mayflies:
Caddisflies:
Stoneflies:
Midges:
Streamers:
Terrestrials:
Click on the Types of
Flies above for our
recommendations.