Favorite Flys “Fly Tying Terms”

Welcome to the Fly Tying Terms section. We hope this section enables and encourages you to become a fly tyer, or to enhance your fly tying skills.

From Perrault's Standard Dictionary of Fishing Flies
by Keith E. Perrault
Terms A
[ A ] [ B ] [ C ] [ D ] [ E ] [ F ] [ G ]
[ H ] [ I ] [ J ] [ K ] [ L ] [ M ] [ N ] [ O ] [ P ]
[ Q ] [ R ] [ S ] [ T ] [ U ] [ V ] [ W ] [ XYZ ]

~ A ~
Abdomen:
Back, aft, or hind portion of fly body from thorax to tail.

Adult:
Full grown or flying stage of insects. Final stage of the aetamorphic process. Adult mayflies include duns and spinners.

Advanced Wing:
Term for wing which slopes forward over hook eye.

Areo Wings:
Sections cut from feathers, both sides of which are equal in length and in coloration with three to five fibers on each side. Used on the Beadle-skeleton series of salmon flies. The cut sections are in the form of a "V" with section of the center rib intact.

After-Shaft:
The soft, small feather normally found at the base of bird's feathers. Some times called "philoplume" or "filo-plume."

Aft Hackle:
Small wind of short, sparse hackle just at bend, or at end of body.

Amherst Pheasant:
Entire skins from this bird provide toppings, crests, tail and wing materials. Black and white tippets , and the greens, whites and reds from the body make this an all-round bird skin for any fly tying bench.

Andalusian:
Fowl cross-breed from which are obtained dun feathers and hackle. Crossing a white bird with a black bird creates plumage in the offspring of some black, some white, and some of in-between combinations. Some of these combinations result in the "dun" hackles so much prized by fly tiers.

Angora:
Hair or wool material from two sources:
    Angora sheep - A soft long fleece wool. Angora rabbit - A very soft fleece hair. Both are used as body material in fly tying.

Antron:
Trade name of "sparkle yarn" made of Nylon fibers, introduced as a fly tying material by Gary LaFontaine.

Artic Fox:
Here is a fur which can range from pure white to a deep blue-gray with some very interesting, almost pure blue, in-between shades. If you are fortunate enough to obtain some of this fur, treasure it.

Argus Pheasant:
A rare Asian bird which provides extremely long feathers. Other feathers are spotted, dotted or eyed, and range from white to dark brown.

Asiatic Kingfisher:
Blue feathers from this bird are excellent substitues for Chatterer blues.

Attractor Flies:
Flies dressed, not representing an insect, but rather a tidbit to arouse interest in a fish so that he shows his position. Some attractor patterns are colorful and gaudy. Most, however, catch fish.