|
|
|
|
|
Some mayflies nymphs, when
reached maturity and are ready to metamorphose into adult, assume a quite clear
color with shades from dirty yellow to ivory. The fish that see so well
distinguishable insects tend to behave in a rather hectic way, intercepting
avidly all those preys that cross their hunting area. This exuberance as
predators does not always coincide with a reduction of prudence, in fact, during
a mayfly hatching, trout and grayling can exasperate their selectivity and
choose with particular care every single insect.
For the fly fisherman this can be the prelude to a challenge with an uncertain outcome and that can result even in a deep frustration: he has chance to beat his clever opponents only if manages to select the right fly and this selection can be not so easy. The most alluring fly is generally characterized by specific qualities: it must appear similar to the preyed insect and swim at a precise level. During an ephemeral hatching, when we see a lot of trout to rise all over the river, we can suppose that the fish are taking adult insects which are floating on the water, or those in an advanced emerging stage that are trapped in surface film. The fact is that the rises can be produced also by a tail movement or a pirouette made by the trout that takes a nymph just a few inches below the surface. From here, the fisherman can incur in the mistake to extract from his box an emerging pattern or a dry fly and this can be refused by an expert fish, because it is an imitation of a winged insect and not of a nymph. The solution to the problem is to tie to the leaders a not weighted nymph when the fish show a selective behavior during a mayfly hatching.
Back to the subject on nymphs with clear colors, if we fish on a river where are hatching such insects, it can be a good tactical to select a fly like the P. L. Ivory Emerger and to propose it to the fish just a few inches below the surface. In many occasions we will be unable to see the fly in the water, but the trout often take it causing a sort of “bubbling” on the surface, or by making emerge its rump and then the tip of its tail, and this help us to strike timely.
For the fly fisherman this can be the prelude to a challenge with an uncertain outcome and that can result even in a deep frustration: he has chance to beat his clever opponents only if manages to select the right fly and this selection can be not so easy. The most alluring fly is generally characterized by specific qualities: it must appear similar to the preyed insect and swim at a precise level. During an ephemeral hatching, when we see a lot of trout to rise all over the river, we can suppose that the fish are taking adult insects which are floating on the water, or those in an advanced emerging stage that are trapped in surface film. The fact is that the rises can be produced also by a tail movement or a pirouette made by the trout that takes a nymph just a few inches below the surface. From here, the fisherman can incur in the mistake to extract from his box an emerging pattern or a dry fly and this can be refused by an expert fish, because it is an imitation of a winged insect and not of a nymph. The solution to the problem is to tie to the leaders a not weighted nymph when the fish show a selective behavior during a mayfly hatching.
Back to the subject on nymphs with clear colors, if we fish on a river where are hatching such insects, it can be a good tactical to select a fly like the P. L. Ivory Emerger and to propose it to the fish just a few inches below the surface. In many occasions we will be unable to see the fly in the water, but the trout often take it causing a sort of “bubbling” on the surface, or by making emerge its rump and then the tip of its tail, and this help us to strike timely.
INSTRUCTIONS

I start to tie the P. L.
Ivory Emerger by clamping the hook in the vice jay and applying the beige thread
on its shank, which I use for nailing, over the bend, a tuft of fibers stripped
off from a blue dun cock hackle

I strip off all the fibers from the blue dun hackle and tie the tip of its stem
over the binding point of the tails. I wax a short stretch of thread and apply
on it a pinch of ivory colored rabbit hair. I compact the dubbing rope and wrap
it along the rear two-thirds of the hook shank

I make the ribbing of the abdomen with wide coils of the hackle stem

From a natural grey cul de canard feather I cut a tuff of fibers and tie it in
front of the abdomen, so that the tips of the fibers extended backwards

I apply a layer of wax on a thread stretch and distribute on it a pinch
of hare hair. I compact the dubbing rope and I wrap it along the front third of
the hook shank

I place a sewing needle over the thorax and push forwards the cul de canard
tuff, securing it just behind the hook eye. I gently pull the needle backwards,
so to create a small space between the thorax and the elytrum

I make the fly head of with some turns of thread and then I whip finish it

I reduce the length of the cul de canard fibers so their
tips reach the hook point, then I distribute a light layer of clear varnish over
the head to prevent the thread to untie itself: this will increase the
resistance of the P. L. Ivory Emerger
MATERIALS LIST
HOOK: medium length shank size 18 to
14
THREAD: beige
TAILS: fibers from a blue dun cock hackle
ABDOMEN: ivory white rabbit hair
RIBBING: the stem of a blue dun cock hackle
THORAX: hare hair
ELYTRUM AND LEGS: natural grey cul de canard
THREAD: beige
TAILS: fibers from a blue dun cock hackle
ABDOMEN: ivory white rabbit hair
RIBBING: the stem of a blue dun cock hackle
THORAX: hare hair
ELYTRUM AND LEGS: natural grey cul de canard