Okay… I see it all the time, CDC and CDL. I’ve been tying for about seven years and I’ve used CDC but I’ve not used CDL. What’s the difference? I’ve never even seen the term CDL until I entered this site a few days ago.
cdc= cul de cunard or duck’s butt
cdl = coq de leone or rooster of leone a rooster from the leone province of Spain. The feathers have very long stiff barbules. Traditionally the feathers are plucked from betwwenn the shoulders of the live bird. Whiting is raising a line of birds from this stock which they butcher and sell like regular genetic hackle.
To amplify, the long stiff barbules of CdL are becoming increasingly popular as tailing material now that most genetic necks don’t have the spade hackles that used to be used for tails. It only comes in a limited color range, but the best are “pardo” which is a speckled brown color (think tail on an Adams) which work for a lot of patterns.
The hen of the bird (I can’t quite bring myself to call it a hen coq, but no se la palabra “hen” in espanol) has feathers which make wonderful soft hackles.
As an aside CdL is oldest “genetic” hackle; it been bred specifically for fly tying since the 1600’s.
:pHmmmm… Expensive???:roll:
Hmmmm… Expensive???:rolleyes:
the Spanish ones are rare and fairly expensive on this side of the Atlantic. The whiting saddles sell for about the same as a regular saddle. The European feathers from the mature birds are also nicer than the whiting feathers . I have some that Sjo from this board was kind enough to send me and I’m saving them for the right flies.
hen=gallina, en espanol
Gracias. I shoulda known.