No. 29. The Red Dun.—The body is made of red orange hair, over which roll a small dun hackle; the wings are a dun grey, and are made of starling wing feather, mixed with a little mallard. No. 10 hook. It may be varied thus: Red legs and dun body; orange floss body, over which roll a black hackle, and This is an excellent fly in rapid streams where there are large trout; it is so attractive that they cannot refuse it when it moves over them. Trout that lie or haunt strong streams, are called, in Ireland, "Hunters." The cause is, no doubt, through their being thin and long in the body, and are possessed with enormous mouths to take in their prey. They take small trout freely. No. 30. The Ant Fly.—The body is made of brown floss silk, and a small fibred peacock harl at tail; a brown red hackle for legs, and wings of starling feather. No. 10 hook. There is a black ant the same size as the above, and a red and black one much larger; the black one is made of black floss for the body, small black hackle for legs, and a blackbird's wing for the wings of the fly. The small ones kill on fine days, and the larger ones when there is a strong wind, which blows them on the water, and causes a ripple. No. 31. The Caperer.—The body is made of brown mohair, or floss silk of a copper colour, and tipped with gold at the tail; a The Winged Larva.—The body is made of brown mohair; the larva is attached to this body at the shoulder, and tailed with two fibres of golden pheasant neck feather, a woodcock hackle round the shoulder, and winged with hen pheasant tail, mixed with a little woodcock or partridge tail feather, and a bronze peacock head. No. 8 hook. It will be found a good fly on dark windy days in this month and the next, and during the prevalence of winds from the east; it will do best where a strong rapid stream runs into a deep pool. A Substitute for the Winged Larva:—The body is made of bright golden yellow mohair, which looks very transparent; a woodcock wing, and a hackle off the same bird, with The Willow Flies.—The body of the first is made of blue squirrel's fur, mixed with a little yellow mohair; a blue dun cock's hackle round the shoulder, and a tomtit wing. No. 8 hook. The second fly is made of orange silk body, ribbed with fine black silk; a very dark furnace hackle round the head, and blackbird's wing. No. 10 hook. The third fly is made of the wings or blue feather of the sea-swallow, for the wing of the fly, and the lightest blue fur that can be got for body (the fine blue of the fox's neck, next to the skin; the fur of a very young water-rat, or the lightest blue fur of the squirrel); a light dun cock's hackle, and a tail of the same. No. 10 hook. These little flies will kill till the end of October, and are excellent fur greyling. There are hundreds of other flies that make their appearance on the water through the summer months, which come under the angler's notice when in pursuit of his pastime, that may be imitated to advantage, the varieties of which must fill the mind with admiration. |