subject: Possibly A Fly Fishing Fly For All Seasons - The Pheasant Tail Nymph [print this page] Of every one of of the fly fishing flies available it definitely the Pheasant Tail Nymph (PTN) which may be indicative all forms of genuine fish food throughout the season. The original design developed by English River Keeper Frank Sawyer, employs the butt ends of the Pheasant to create a wing case. A handy adaptation is this fly tied with a gold bead head. Frank did not attempt to insinuate legs in his design seeing that he had observed that nymphs fold them in whilst swimming. He devised the pheasant tail nymph for use in the River Avon in Wiltshire, Southern England. the pheasant tail nymph swiftly became world famous. Frank's book 'Nymphs and Trout' first published in 1958 describes the method of tying and fishing the nymph. The main theme in his patterns is simplicity. Frank Sawyer is also renowned for the Sawyer Killer Bug, tied with the legendary Chadwick's 477 wool originally used for darning socks!
The Pheasant Tail is, without doubt, the most effective may fly nymph reproduction ever designed should you view the natural active darter nymph you will realize why. For instance just have a look at the photograph of the Blue Winged Olive nymph and you will see that it is an excellent counterpart for it's profile and color. The nymph is designed to sink fast when presented up stream with a subsurface feeding grayling. It really works efficiently in the moving water of streams and then the still water of reservoirs. It's one of the most popular grayling fly fishing flies used. Different types of may flies come into sight all year long, along with the nymph stage is the easiest one for trout to obtain constantly. May fly's nymphs are versatile as they could live in fast, turbulent water, or in slow or still water environments. Through shuffling the gravel in a stream or lake, and looking on stream bed rocks, you will find the nymphs but it's a simple matter of matching the fly fishing fly size to get a persuasive equal. The may fly nymph on a stream river or lake bed will seek to hide which enable it to be difficult for trout to obtain contrasting the mature nymphs that go up towards the surface to emerge into the adult dun may fly.
If you observe trout darting to and fro below the water they may be grabbing rising mature may fly nymphs as these are swept past by the current. A fly fisherman do not want a heavily weighted artificial fly fishing fly to emulate these ascending nymphs. Through it's streamlined outline the pheasant tail nymph penetrates the water surface right away and sinks quickly. When lifted gently before or a the side of a a fish to mimic the upward movement of the actual natural nymph rising towards surface you'll induce a 'take'. To authenticate the deadly nature of this pheasant tail nymph, Gary Borger, in the book Nymphs, wrote that when he received Frank Sawyer's book for his birthday and tied some Pheasant Tail nymphs for use in a Montana spring creek. In his first encounter with this fly fishing fly, he caught twenty seven fish in one hundred feet of stream in 2 hours, every one between 1 and 3.5 pounds!
Possibly A Fly Fishing Fly For All Seasons - The Pheasant Tail Nymph
