What are you struggling with?

[jtweatherford]

Hello,

I'm new to this forum. I am a self taught fly fisherman in Colorado. I'm trying to get a better grasp of entomology. My first step was learning how to spell it. Now that I've got that down, the next step is understanding it.

I'm looking to learn from you all here and eventually be able to help you out because this is a tricky topic. I think it gets a lot of beginners confused, lost, and frustrated. I know it did and still does get me confused especially when I'm out on the river and have no idea what to pick from my fly box.

My question for you all is the following:

What is your #1 biggest challenge at the moment with entomology?

I'm trying to figure out how best to help serve you in this cumbersome topic.

Thanks,
JT

 

[Bigfly]

JT, welcome......
I tell everybody the same thing.....
The good news is, they aren't making any new bugs.
The bad news is, there are already a bunch!
All you have to worry about, is the next one.
Fish the beginning of the hatch curve , not the end.
Make a bug seine, and use it. Also, get a specimen vial put 90% rubbing alcohol. All things (or many) will become clear.
Lots of guys just fish "their" fly and hope for the best.
Study a little and fish will start lining up.......

Jim

 

[boisker]

I keep meaning to properly get to grips with entomology.... but once again as then end of the season approaches I havent
My trouble is I struggle to find the time and motivation... I can only spend so much time in any one week on the river... so always spend it fishing... maybe when I retire, assuming I live that long
It doesn't help that I definitely fall in the 'impressionistic' side of flies and fly tying..
So when on the river I don't really need to know exactly what it is, just-
Family type... olive, sedge....
size
colour
What stage are the fish feeding on... spinners/emergers......
And that about covers it....
Perhaps I'm just inherently lazy

 

[jtweatherford]

Thanks Jim and Boisker. It is really overwhelming when looking at all the different types of flies. Jim you did put it in perspective though about the flies aren't changing. Boisker, time and motivation are tricky things. They both seem to slip away just like the biggest fish you'll ever catch. We're always chasing it. Thank you both!

 

[scotty macfly]

The issue I have is when I turn a rock over and see numerous bugs, and different ones at that, I look at the whole menu of it all and wonder which is the most common the fish see and will take. I figure fish can't be too different from people when it comes to a meal, as in, do I want a tripple bacon cheese burger, or a piece of jerky? I'm going for the burger. So why wouldn't a fish who is an opertunistic feeder not take the bigger of the two? Sometimes they don't, so now I have to figure something else out or just close my eyes and choose a fly.

I do try to match what I find as closely as I can, size & color. I do find black is always good, at least in my situations.

 

[Bigfly]

Think of a restaurant menu,
What's the special?
Turning over rocks tells very little other than what is on the menu in total.
A skim seine in just the top 6" will tell you what's poppin... gives you someplace to start.
A full depth undisturbed seine gives a few more answers...
And a disturbed bottom seine tells more.
Then, factor in terrestrials, and any wind falls.
Piece of cake..................
There is obviously a range of interest in this.
From the guy who just always fishes an Adams...to a guy that needs to know the Latin for every bug and has just the right bug tied up.
I don't care to read lots of taxonomy for fun.
But I'll be damned if I will just guess.
I enjoy catching too.
Use a net, get a vial, and you are good to go. I literally made one in under two minutes, while clients waited, when I discovered I had lost my favorite net. Duct tape light olive mosquito netting to two sticks......
Take the vial to the shop for best results when buying flies..
Or, set it next to the vise, to get it right.

Jim

 

[mcnerney]

JT

Jim has offered great advice on how to begin to learn what bugs are in your water you fish. Seeing that you are from Colorado, you might also look into catching one of the seminars that Robert "The Bug Guy" puts on. He also does on the water classes and also sells a DVD set on entomology. Blue Quill Anglers and many other fly shops also put on classes on entomology from time to time, so check out your local fly shop.

The Bug Guy: home

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gV_46PLdTu8

 

[Rip Tide]

I don't speak Latin and I realized long time ago that the more precise that you try to be, the more likely you'll be wrong.
Therefore I'm perfectly fine with common names.
To me, a Baetis is an "olive" (not even BWO ) and an Isonychi is a "slate drake"

However I always keep in mind that there's 4 basic groups of mayflies: Swimmers, Crawlers, Clingers, and Burrowers.
And each of those has a distinct habitat (that might overlap) with a body shape to match (sorta ).
If you can recognize the habitat, then you have a pretty good head start on predicting which which mayfly might reside there..
Of course it helps to know in advance which are swimmers ( olives, speckled duns) which are crawlers (Hendricksons, PMDs, blue quills), clingers (March browns, Cahills) and burrowers (Hex and the big drakes)

There's also 3 basic types of caddis. Net makers, case builders, and free living, but I think most fly fishers struggle to pin very many of those with commons names.
Case builders (like grannoms and giant Oct caddis that are out now ) aren't hard to spot, and most folks know what a free living "green rock worm" looks like, but caddis are far harder to understand ... at least for me.

 

[scotty macfly]

Reading all this information, and it's great info to receive so don't get me wrong, but all the Latin words and everything just sometimes makes my head spin. You see, when I read all this, I'm picturing nymphs, and it really can't be as hard as I'm making it out to be. But it does make me glad that over the years I have become 99% a purist. I look at whats flying around or floating on the water and match it, and I'm done. Easy as tying a shoe. For me when I did nymph more often, the entomology of it just confused me, and I never saw a reason to learn the name of the bugs unless describing them to someone which is difficult for me to do. So I stopped.

 

[comeonavs]

I struggle with latin and dont really seine the water anymore. Since I tend to fish the same 3 rivers over and over I guess I sort of know

Early spring is olive or blue midges are productive, if pockets are deeper I drop them off a heavy point nymph like a tungsten surveyor or a hot wire soft hackle pattern I sort of made up.

Later spring think a bit warmer is BWO nymphs so lots of Pheasant tails and hares ears get fished deep and jujubee midges get fished a lot behind rainbow warriors

Pre run off - Stonefly

Summer I fish parachute adams and parachute adams and occasionally I will mix in a parachute adams and then I will drop a barr emerger off a parachute adams.


Fall- RS2, RS2, BWO dries and RS2 dropped off a BWO dry

I am sure I could add terrestrials to the mix and I do pop some caddis out there late summer too. But for the most part I do whats above and I seem to catch fish

 

[alexs]

I spend a lot of time in the winter reading and re-reading fishing books. Most of them are not interesting anymore, but there are some that give me a couple of "aha" moments every time I am going through them. I'd suggest you spend a couple bucks and read the following:

https://www.amazon.com/Seasons-Trou...2&keywords=jason+randal,+seasons+of+the+trout

https://www.amazon.com/Feeding-Time...0&keywords=jason+randal,+seasons+of+the+trout

It will up your game...

 

[winstonwt]

Jason Randall,you need to read all three,moving water,feeding time,andtrout sense.