My little boy was looking in my fly tying book and asked me why did the grasshopper have a red tail? I told him I assumed that it would help cause the fish to make a strike at it. but I really don’t know, and was just wondering if anyone had any idea why that is?
thanks in advance,
hNt
Tradition!
Some hoppers seem to have a tinge of red in that area (at least according to Dave Whitlock on a tape I used to have).
Can’t say that I have ever observed red on the rear end of a hopper. Not saying some hoppers, maybe lots of them, don’t have some red, but not the ones that I’ve seen.
This guy …
… doesn’t have any red on it, and it has worked everywhere I’ve fished it for trout, and has gotten pretty good reviews from others who have tied it and fished it.
John
P.S. For hopper patterns tied entirely on the hook, a red ( or any other color ) “tail” does extend the body somewhat, which could be a good thing just from a size and silhouette point of view.
Then again …
… red can be fun.
Fished all of the above during one outing last summer and couldn’t see that the colors made any difference to the fish. Some flies did a bit better than others, but that was most likely because the time of day they were on the water, and not at all because of the color combinations.
John
A lot of hoppers around here have red (or red-tinged) hind legs, and contrary to a lot of patterns, the rear legs on hoppers can often run pretty close together.
Many hoppers also have a pale peach or pink underside to their abdomen, which explains why pink hoppers are killer around here.
Maybe they have red in Mountain Home Arkansas.
Personally, I’ve never really seen a bright yellow grasshopper, but what the heck I fish them anyways.
I’m very partial to the GFA Hopper tied with foam strips of yellow, tan and green (and in black for crickets). Maybe I should add a tinge of red in the back with marker.
Red is just a good color to use sometimes, fish really respond to a bit of red. I have seen a red grasshopper on the Yakima River in eastern WA one time, a very red, full body color. Larry —sagefisher—
The only hoppers I tie are exactly what you tie, GFA Hoppers in yellow, tan, and green. Yes, I have some in black for crickets as well. The hoppers are here range in color from green, yellow/green, yellow, yellow/tan, and tan. I’m not sure if it’s just different species of hoppers, or the time of year. I see more green and green/yellow hoppers early (like, now), and going through yellow to tan as the season progresses. Although, that isn’t set in stone. I did see a tan one yesterday.
I think I’ve seen a few hoppers with a peach-colored bellies. Maybe I need to tie some in that color, or pink.
At the same time, I’m wondering if matching the hatch on hoppers really matters for me. The sunfish will usually slam a hopper within seconds of the bug hitting the water. It gets addicting!