Duck Feathers

All about flies Fly Tying
1

If you all don’t mind another question from the newbie…

I tend to get a few ducks in the winter, usually mallard, gadwall and teal.

Could someone offer some guidence on what I can use off these ducks to tie flies with?

I’ve heard about CDC but not sure where you gather that from. And it seems there ought to be something you could do with the speculums and the green feathers off a drake.

Thanks,

Terry

2

Hi Terry…here’s a few uses off the top of my head…
primary and secondary flight feathers are used for wings on alot of wetfly and some drys too.
Flank feathers are used for wings on wets and drys also.The most recognizable being from the woodduck. Gadwall has a very interesting flank feather that makes a great Adams wing.
CDC of course is very popular…I buy mine so I can’t be of any help on where to gather it from…somewhere near the rearend!
Keep asking questions and Im sure there will be others along to expand on the list of uses…Jason

“There’s always room for one more wrap of hackle”

3

Ok, the barred flank feathers from drake puddle ducks, mallard, teal, gadwall, woodies and wigeon are all excellent. They are found along the sides and under the wings. Now cdc is found on all ducks, both drakes and hens divers, puddlers and geese. To find it, locate the preen gland; it is on top of the tail, a little bump just back from where the tail feathers are attached. In a drake mallard it would be found just under the tail curl feathers. The cdc is a little puff of feathers surrounding the preen gland about the size of a quarter on a big mallard. Just grasp them all and give a tug and you got them. There is not many cdc feathers on on any one duck, but save them all and they add up. It only takes a second to gather them. You are right about the speculums. I use green wing teal speculums as wing cases on hare’a ear nymphs. Glad to see another duck hunter on the board.

Ron M

4

Terry: Like you and Ron I hunt ducks & geese. To me it is somewhat of an obsession - almost as deep as fly fishing. For the past several years I have saved large amounts of duck feathers and gladly gave them away to other tiers from this site and others. I hope that the bird flu does not put a kink in this fall’s hunt.

In addtion to what Ron has stated I find that the breast feathers of the greenwing teal as well as the woodduck make neat looking flies when tied hornberg style. Also the brown breast feathers of the drake mallard make good tail feathers as well as beards (legs) on wet flies. The neck feather of almost any of the hen puddle ducks make excellent soft hackles and can be used in lieu of grouse.

In short, when you harvest a bird look at the feathers and ask yourself “what can I make with these feathers?”. Let your imagination run wild - - you never know when you might find a use for some duck feathers you have in storage. Just a few weeks ago I saw a fly somewhere on the web what called for the wings to be of white breast feathers from a duck. It just so happened I had a package of breast feathers from a drake goldeneye stuck away in a corner which worked perfectly for that fly.

The main thing in my mind is to be innovative. Let your imagination go and have fun.

Tim Anderson

5

Terry:

Here is that woodduck breast feather fly I mentioned in my previous note.

Tim
[url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v610/Panman/Fishing%20Flies/WoodDuckHornberg.jpg:d103c]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v610/Panman/Fishing%20Flies/WoodDuckHornberg.jpg[/url:d103c]

6

To
locate CDC rest a waterfowl in your left hand as if it was resting on the water. Take your right hand and feel along it’s back down to the
base of the tail until you feel a bump near the base of the tail. Pull the feathers back and look for the bump (oil preening gland). Around
the bump you will find these short gray fluffs.

When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro. HST

7

Thanks for the guidence fellows!

Has anyone figured out how to use the green feathers of the mallard drake head, or are these too short?

It seems these would look great on a fly in some way if you could find a way to use them.

Thanks again for all the wisdom!

Thanks,

Terry

8

[url=http://www.maineflyfish.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=5322:65a1f]http://www.maineflyfish.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=5322[/url:65a1f]

When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro. HST