Fly Fishing 101, Part 17

There is a free magazine available at your local fly shops. Entirely supported by advertising (meaning free to you), Fly Fish America produces magazines for six regions of the U.S. (We get the Pacific edition.) One issue had a terrific article by Paul Marriner, titled the "Magic Inch." This magic inch is where insects are just prior to emerging in the top one inch of the water. Nymphs along with spent spinners, empty shucks, and cripples who were not able to get out of their shucks all ride the current in this one inch layer. Below the surface, more activity takes place. Some anglers claim 90% of the food trout eat is taken below the surface. That generally means nymphs. Mayfly nymphs fall into four groups. A knowledge of which group is which will tell you which nymphs and adult mayflies you have in specific locals. Each of the mayfly families require certain environments. Species which live in slow-water developed excellent swimming characterists. Other species evolved to crawl along the river or lake bottoms, cling to underwater rocks or structure in fast-moving water, or others which burrow in stream or lakebed mud. Brown Drake (Ephemera simulans) Burrowing Nymphs Burrowing nymphs construct protective burrows composed of fine gravels, sands, muds, or silts in river beds or lake beds. Flav (Drunella flavilinea) Crawler Nymphs Crawler nymphs inhabit diverse habitats. Species in faster waters resemble clinger nymphs and species in slower waters resemble swimming nymphs. Mayfly photographs by Jim Schollmeyer; from Mayflies, An Anglers' Study of Trout Water Ephemoroptra by Malcolm Knopp and Robert Cormier. Published by Greycliff.