Understanding trout flies and entomology can seem pretty intimidating for a beginning fly fisherman.
But, it doesn't have to be if you can get familiar with bugs and their life cycle on the water.
It's really pretty simple.
In fact, with a bit of education and practice learning about the different types of insects and terrestrials that your trout fishing flies are trying to imitate, you will increase your chances of success, as well as the amount of money you have in your wallet.
As a beginner or if you're fishing in unfamiliar waters, it's easy to walk into a local fly shop and throw down loads of cash on hot trout flies that are "guaranteed" to be successful.
But, if you learn the basics you can spend more time on the water and less time spending money in the shop.
Mayflies These little bugs are born on the bottom of streams and rivers and are a constant source of food for all species of trout.
Their imitations are a mainstay in many successful fishermen's fly boxes.
Nymphs When mayfly eggs are hatched, these little bugs remain under water as a nymph.
They'll spend the next several months to a year shedding their skin and casing several times.
Emergers A mayfly's first stage of adulthood as the nymph sheds its casing and reveals its wings to be able to fly away.
Spinners and Duns This stage of the bug's life is when the mayfly straightens its wings on the surface of the water to dry.
Caddis Flies These little bugs resemble moths when they've grown to full adulthood.
Stone Flies These flies vary in size across the country.
Where I live out west, these bugs can grow to be monsters.
Fishing during a stone fly, or salmon fly hatch is extremely popular in late spring or early summer because the size of these flies make them very easy to spot in the water.
The attacking nature of the trout during these hatches makes for an exciting fight for many fishermen.
Aside from natural bait consisting of small fish and live insects and flies, a well-made fly replica can land you a wonderful trout.
Many anglers take great pride in learning to tie their own flies and pass those skills as well as those flies to later generations.
You can take fly tying lessons or teach yourself via video, books, or with special fly tying kits available for purchase.
When in Doubt: Look Around To use trout fishing flies most effectively, you need to know the type of trout you are fishing for and be familiar with its feeding habits.
With that information in mind, take a look around the area you'll be fishing in.
If you see particular types of flies and insects buzzing around the stream shore, you can bet those are going to be very successful baits for you to mimic.
You may find you get more strikes from trout early in the morning or late at night.
You'll have to experiment in variety of ways to see what works for you.
You'll usually find a huge variety of trout fishing flies available in tackle shops near good trout fishing spots.
Try and get out fishing during the times flies are hatching around waters.
Trout are on high alert during this time so you may get more strikes.
Try to tie or use a fly that most closely mimics the flies in the area the fish are biting on.
Keep the size of your fly and hook in mind too.
Color counts as well as does the quality of your tie.
You don't want your fly coming apart and looking like an unraveled mess.
Trout can be very finicky and you have to fool them into thinking your bait is real.
Trout Fly Presentation Your trout fishing flies will even be more useful to you when you practice your casting.
A great cast will serve a fly to a trout or wherever you think a trout might be lurking without a lot of splash or disturbance to the water.
Remember, the idea is to convince the trout your bait is a real fly that has landed or dropped into the water ever so conveniently.
If you are sloppy with your delivery or jerk the line and reel in too quickly or not fast enough, the trout will swim past your line.
Practice Makes Perfect In the end, don't be afraid to try all of these types of trout flies when fishing.
Even nymph and sub-surface fishing is an important part of a successful fisherman's arsenal.
In fact, the majority of food sources for most trout are coming from sub-surface bugs.
So, don't be afraid to sling a nymph rig now and then! It all comes down to practice and imitating the different cycles of a bug's life to be successful at catching trout.
But, it doesn't have to be if you can get familiar with bugs and their life cycle on the water.
It's really pretty simple.
In fact, with a bit of education and practice learning about the different types of insects and terrestrials that your trout fishing flies are trying to imitate, you will increase your chances of success, as well as the amount of money you have in your wallet.
As a beginner or if you're fishing in unfamiliar waters, it's easy to walk into a local fly shop and throw down loads of cash on hot trout flies that are "guaranteed" to be successful.
But, if you learn the basics you can spend more time on the water and less time spending money in the shop.
Mayflies These little bugs are born on the bottom of streams and rivers and are a constant source of food for all species of trout.
Their imitations are a mainstay in many successful fishermen's fly boxes.
Nymphs When mayfly eggs are hatched, these little bugs remain under water as a nymph.
They'll spend the next several months to a year shedding their skin and casing several times.
Emergers A mayfly's first stage of adulthood as the nymph sheds its casing and reveals its wings to be able to fly away.
Spinners and Duns This stage of the bug's life is when the mayfly straightens its wings on the surface of the water to dry.
Caddis Flies These little bugs resemble moths when they've grown to full adulthood.
Stone Flies These flies vary in size across the country.
Where I live out west, these bugs can grow to be monsters.
Fishing during a stone fly, or salmon fly hatch is extremely popular in late spring or early summer because the size of these flies make them very easy to spot in the water.
The attacking nature of the trout during these hatches makes for an exciting fight for many fishermen.
Aside from natural bait consisting of small fish and live insects and flies, a well-made fly replica can land you a wonderful trout.
Many anglers take great pride in learning to tie their own flies and pass those skills as well as those flies to later generations.
You can take fly tying lessons or teach yourself via video, books, or with special fly tying kits available for purchase.
When in Doubt: Look Around To use trout fishing flies most effectively, you need to know the type of trout you are fishing for and be familiar with its feeding habits.
With that information in mind, take a look around the area you'll be fishing in.
If you see particular types of flies and insects buzzing around the stream shore, you can bet those are going to be very successful baits for you to mimic.
You may find you get more strikes from trout early in the morning or late at night.
You'll have to experiment in variety of ways to see what works for you.
You'll usually find a huge variety of trout fishing flies available in tackle shops near good trout fishing spots.
Try and get out fishing during the times flies are hatching around waters.
Trout are on high alert during this time so you may get more strikes.
Try to tie or use a fly that most closely mimics the flies in the area the fish are biting on.
Keep the size of your fly and hook in mind too.
Color counts as well as does the quality of your tie.
You don't want your fly coming apart and looking like an unraveled mess.
Trout can be very finicky and you have to fool them into thinking your bait is real.
Trout Fly Presentation Your trout fishing flies will even be more useful to you when you practice your casting.
A great cast will serve a fly to a trout or wherever you think a trout might be lurking without a lot of splash or disturbance to the water.
Remember, the idea is to convince the trout your bait is a real fly that has landed or dropped into the water ever so conveniently.
If you are sloppy with your delivery or jerk the line and reel in too quickly or not fast enough, the trout will swim past your line.
Practice Makes Perfect In the end, don't be afraid to try all of these types of trout flies when fishing.
Even nymph and sub-surface fishing is an important part of a successful fisherman's arsenal.
In fact, the majority of food sources for most trout are coming from sub-surface bugs.
So, don't be afraid to sling a nymph rig now and then! It all comes down to practice and imitating the different cycles of a bug's life to be successful at catching trout.
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