Olive spentwing spinners

[lastchance]

Is there such a thing as olive spentwing spinners on the water? I've only ever tied duns. I'm anticipating the fall olive hatch. I tie them in sizes 18 & 20. I think they mate over land, but do they die on the water?
Thanks

[Bamboozle]

lastchance:

With the variety of species of mayflies that hatch in PA that are referred to as "olives"; nothing is absolute when it comes to the behavior of insects. Heck I've seen Tricos mating over a road that parallels a creek.

I carry a few generic poly wing olive spinners with me...

...just in case.

They are so easy to tie that it isn't a big deal. I have caught a few fish on them but my bread and butter during the fall olive hatches where I fish are emergers because with the colder temps; the duns often take a while to pop. Any good emerger pattern will work; just vary the color to suit the natural.

[lastchance]

Bamboozle: What color are the emergers? Are they dark brown, gray, olive?

[Bamboozle]

last:

Even though the real bug/emerger will often times have a brownish body; my olive emergers are for the most part olive.

Funny thing is; I tie 98% of my BWO dries with a grey body and olive hackle since most of the "olives" I encounter are more grey than olive with olive legs.

All of the emergers I have the best luck with are tied with a dark brown or brown Z-Lon or Antron trailing shuck. I REALLY like using grey CDC for a wing. A little brush with Frog's Fanny and they float pretty darn good. I am also kind of partial to tying them on a curved shank hook.

One more thing; if you don?t own a copy of Hatches or Hatches II by Al Caucci and Bob Nastasi; get one! It should be readily available in the used book market if there isn?t a current edition.

Beside my own observations; this book is my bible for mayfly behavior, coloration, size and hatching information. While some of the Latin names are confusing and may have been changed; the info in this book is excellent and very useful for Pennsylvania.

If I don?t have any first hand experience with a particular bug; I just go to Hatches and get the color & size of the natural and just tie up a general pattern in the right color & size.

As a result my fly boxes have a limited number of patterns in a whole lot of different basic colors. It works great for me and makes life a LOT simpler.

[psyfly11]

Be sure to look at the book "Mayflies" by Ted Fuceglia, great photographs of the major eastern hatches, also se the website troutnut.com excellent pictures of major hatches.

[lastchance]

I'm in the market for Hatches II. I found it on Amazon--it seems to be about everyone's bug bible. Ted Fauceglia's book is also another one I have marked for future purchase.
Bamboozle, I tie my olives gray, too. I've actually never really seen too many olives that were an olive color around Central, PA.
As for emergers I've been tying them dark brown with a gray CDC wing. Sometimes I fish them in the surface or as a dropper with a larger nymph as the point fly. I think I tie them in 18 & 20.
I really enjoy exchanging information like this--you learn so much no matter how long you've been involved in the sport.
And, I carry way too many flies around with me. I guess I'm a bit OCD. LOL!
Thanks

[Joe Billingsley]

Aren't most BWOs a rusty color when and if they return to the water?
Joe

[lastchance]

Hi Joe: I'm only going on information given to me by persons who are much more knowledgeable than myself. I was actually told the emergers are a dark brown. I was told in the spring that the Olive Duns are a light olive color on the bottom, the part the fish sees. My own experience with fall olives is that they are gray-bodied duns. From what I've been learning in the past few posts olive spentwing spinners really don't exist. The reason I asked about olive spentwing spinners is because I can't recall every seeing them and I didn't want to overlook another way to fool the fish. I need all the help I can get. The only sure fire way to know size and color for sure is to look at a bug from the water you're fishing. I'm not very good with colors so I get second and third opinions. Colors can be subjective, too! Sorry I can't be more help.

[Joe Billingsley]

Hi, lastchance,
What I meant was, and I didn't say it right, the few BWOs that return to the water as spentwing spinners - at least as I understand it - are usually a rust color, not olive or gray. I don't think many of them even fly back to the water to lay eggs. They're crawlers, aren't they?
Joe

[lastchance]

No. I think they are pretty good swimmers. Their bodies are long and sleek. I think that's why the PT is used many times for an imiation of the nymph. But, I'm certainly no expert. Maybe somebody could jump in here.