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A Zebra Midge can be an absolutely devastatingly
attractive nymph in slow and medium flow trout
fisheries, but many fly anglers find nymph fishing
in general to be a great mystery. And many competent
nymph anglers find the Zebra Midge only marginally
successful. As with most flies, success with this
diminutive nymph is all in the presentation. And
it doesn't produce phenomenal results until you
understand what it is supposed to imitate and how
the fish feed on that stage of the particular
insect. I have a lot of success with Zebra Midges.
So I thought I'd use this week's column to discuss
this tiny fish-catching dynamo.
The Zebra Midge is a nymph that imitates midge pupae
and/or emerging midges. Herein lies the first clue
to how to fish them. The Zebra consists of nothing
more than a size 16-24 shrimp/scud hook wrapped in
colored thread and a copper or silver fine wire with
a 2 or 3mm tungsten bead head of matching metallic
finish. It is very simple to tie, durable, and pretty
easy to fish once you know how. Colors that have
worked well for me include rust, red, black, and
olive.
Start with the hook and add the bead head. Next,
affix your thread to the hook shank behind the
bead and wrap back to a point on the shank about
1/3 of the way down the bend. Tie in your fine
wire. Now wrap thread forward and build a taper
that bells toward the bead head. Bear in mind
that you are imitating a midge pupa. Less is
more. Try to see how little thread you can
actually use and still achieve a tapered look.
Now you wrap the wire around the thread body
from the bend to the bead head, creating a
ribbed effect. Tie off the wire and clip the
excess. Add a coat of clear, hard, fast-drying
nail polish or coat with clear epoxy. Let it
dry and you're ready to fish. (refer to FAOL
Fly of the Week:
Zebra Midge)
I fish Zebras below a very small, football-shaped
strike indicator. Takes can be quite light, so
you want to go with the smallest indicator that
will float with the weight of the fly. That's
pretty small. Affix the indicator 12 to 18 inches
above the fly and no more. This is one of the
primary differences between the way most nymphs
are fished and the way a Zebra Midge fishes most
effectively. With most nymphs you want to bounce
along the bottom, and your depth is set according
to the water depth. Generally speaking, you rig
a bottom-bumping nymph 1½ times the depth of the
water you're fishing. The Zebra Midge is most
effective when fish are actively feeding on
emerging midges. You will see the fish rolling
in light current as they take midge pupae they
catch struggling toward the surface. You may
even see occasional surface takes. By setting
the fly closer to the indicator, you accomplish
one of the two main ingredients of the proper...
and most deadly...variation in the presentation.
Another difference is tippet size. These tiny
nymphs require light tippet. I use either 6x
or 7x most of the time. In faster water, I find
I can get by with 5x, but I am certain that it
costs me a few fish. The lighter, suppler tippets
allow for more natural motion of the fly.
Now you're ready to cast. When nymphing under
an indicator it is important to remember to keep
your loop open to avoid wind knots. Do not try
to over-power your cast. Smooth your stops just
a tad. Cast upstream and across current where
you see the feeding trout. Allow the indicator
to drift down until it is about parallel to you
in the stream. Now you need to delicately mend
upstream as the fly drifts by you. Get all of
the line upstream of the indicator. Watch for
the slightest dunking of the indicator throughout
the drift. If it goes under, set the hook. When
you perform your upstream mend as the indicator
comes parallel, you will notice the indicator slows
down. This is not a fish taking your fly. This
is your fly sinking to full depth as slack enters
your line.
When your fly line begins to bow downstream, mend
again...this time pulling the line of your drift
closer to where you stand...and allow the fly to
finish its drift almost directly downstream of your
position. You can effectively fish the Zebra Midge
this way in water depths ranging from a few inches
in a running riffle to a few feet in a deeper,
slower pool. Trout see your offering as an emerging
midge pupa struggling toward the surface film. Most
often, this is a trout's favorite stage in which to
feed on midges. And since midges hatch all year
long, the Zebra Midge is an excellent all-season
pattern.
One final word of caution: be prepared for the
take throughout your presentation. I have hooked
many a trout while mending my line. I get very
few strikes at the end of the drift. Most strikes
occur in the top ¾ of the drift. You must remove
all the slack in your dead drifting line very quickly
in order to hook up. But be careful not to use
power...just speed. Keep your arms, hands, and
shoulders relaxed. Master this unique nymphing
technique and you can enjoy many action-filled
days of trout fishing on your favorite stream.
And perhaps you will become as big of a fan of
the Zebra Midge as I am. ~ Ken
About Ken:
Ken graduated from Southern Methodist University
in 1988, and spent the next several years serving
in the United States Navy as an intelligence analyst
and Russian Language translator. He is a veteran
of Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Leaving the
nation's service in 1993.
Ken is also a published outdoor writer and historian,
having penned articles and stories that have appeared
in several national hunting publications like North
American Hunter magazine, on GunMuse.com, in regional
and local newspapers, and historical and literary
journals. He also provides hunting and dog training
seminars for Bass Pro Shops and other sporting goods
retailers nationwide and works with other outdoors
businesses and conservation organizations in the
fields of public relations, promotional marketing,
fund-raising, and advertising. He also is a partner
in Silver Mallard Properties, LLC. He currently
resides with his wife, Wilma, their Weimaraner,
Smoky Joe, and their Labrador Retriever, Jake, in
Branson, Missouri, where he founded the
Branson/Tri-Lakes Chapter of Ducks Unlimited in 1998.
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