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Pheasant Tail Midge Pupa
Pheasant Tail Midge Pupa
Tying Instructions
1. Slip on the 1/16 bead onto the hook. You may need to mash down the barb to get it to fit. Attach the thread behind the bead.
2. Attach an Extra Small copper wire to the bottom of the hook shank behind the bead with thread wraps.
3. Secure the wire ribbing with thread wraps to the bend of the hook.
4. Clip two Pheasant Tail fibers from the center of the tail. Secure near the tips at the bend of the hook with 2-3 tight thread wraps.
5.Wrap the thread in front of the fibers and wrap back up to the bead.
6. Start wrapping the fibers using your finger and thumb to hold the fibers. This can help keep the fibers alighned. Holding the fibers, I use the rotary function of the vise to wrap the fibers around the shank using my finger and thumb to guide the fibers into position. Once past the midpoint of the shank, you may need a hackle plier to hold the material as you rotate the vise.
7. Wrap the fibers up to the bead and secure with some thread wraps.
8. Counterwrap the copper wire ribbing with 5 turns spiroling up to the bead.
9. Trim off the tag ends of the fibers and the wire. You can also trim the tail to the length you prefer. Whip finish.
10. The finished Pheasant Tail Midge Pupa.
| Materials
to Order Material, click the link |
|
|---|---|
| Hook | TMC 2487 #18-22 |
| Thread | Veevus 12/0 Black |
| Head | 1/16 Black Cyclop Bead |
| Weight | 0.020 Leadfree wire |
| Body | Pheasant Tail fibers |
| Tail | Pheasant Tail fibers |
| Thorax | Pheasant Tail fibers |
| Ribbing | Small Copper Wire |
Frank Sawyer
Pheasant Tail Midge Pupa
The Pheasant Tail Midge Pupa is a variant of the Pheasant Tail Nymph designed by Frank Sawyer in the 1950’s. Like Frank’s original PTN, the Pheasant Tail midge pupa is tied with only Pheasant Tail fibers and a copper wire rib. The bead is optional as it can help bring the fly further down in the water column or you can use the pattern without a bead and fish the surface film.
No appendages
The pattern is tied without appendages to imitate small midge and caddis larvae, usually tied in sizes 18-22. The mini barbules that stick out from the pheasant tail fibers give both movement and a lifelike appearance. There is the opportunity to create many variations with this pattern as you can select dyed Pheasant Tail and dyed Turkey feathers for color variations. The wire color can also be changed to gold, silver, or other colors available.
Glass Bead Option
Also try using colored glass beads which provide little weight but give the pattern some attraction. On some variations, gills are added just behind the eye of the hook using material such as CDC or Antron. Additional structures might be wingbuds such as goose biots. Tom Loe of Sierra Drifters used Turkey Biots with his Gillies. See Drifter’s Chironomids. However, the simplicity of Pheasant Tail Midge Pupa cannot be overstated. It’s simple and it works!
Variations
Pheasant Tail Midge Pupa
| Hook | TMC 2488 #18-22 |
| Thread | Veevus 12/0 Black |
| Gills | CDC white |
| Body | Pheasant Tail fibers |
| Tail | Pheasant Tail fibers |
| Thorax | Ice Dubbing, Peacock Black |
| Ribbing | Extra Small Silver Wire |
Pheasant Tail Midge Pupa
| Hook | TMC 206BL #16-18 |
| Thread | Uni-8/0 Camel |
| Gills | White Antron |
| Body | Black Pheasant Tail fibers |
| Wingbuds | Goose Biots dyed Tan |
| Thorax | Superfine, Rusty Brown |
| Ribbing | Pearl Tinsel |