Hackle, Ants and Floatant

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Oct 9, 2013 Hackle, Ants and Floatant

Small hackle flies and ants caught fish today.
The flies were refurbs, tied over some old #16 trout flies I've had hanging around. These old flies have a bit of floss or chenille remaining after decades, but that's it.

So rather than throw them out, I use them as a base to which I add hackle, wings, etc. Some might call me cheap for doing this; but I like to think I'm recycling a "valued resource." It helps that these flies once belonged to my long deceased father. I'm sure he would be pleased to see me reusing his old tackle.

As long as these flies floated, there were strikes at the surface. Most were short takes, but one was a 12" bass. I'll play with those guys any time, and be happy to do it.

Once the fly became sodden, it would slip beneath the surface after splashdown... Then it was countdown time.
Give it 3-5 seconds, and begin working the bug with a 1 ft. stripping retrieve.
I caught several small bass and a 6" red ear this way, and each was a savage hit-and-run. Usually, the fly was moving on the take.
It may be October, but the fish are still willing to hit it hard!

I was also testing a home made fly floatant, something I read about in one of my fishing books. It is a simple, 3:1 solution of naphtha and silicone grease. It is easy to make, inexpensive and has potential. In use, the naphtha evaporates immediately after application, leaving a thin silicone film on the fly. I won't say it is perfect, yet, but once I get the ratio right, it ought to do the trick.

[Leo Nguyen]

Well there you go. It's fishy fly. Anything that catches fly is good on your fly book. It may not land 100 fishes in 1 hour, but surely it lands a fish. Keep perfecting it buddy!

[Leo Nguyen]

Very unique and great way to recyle materials.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Thanks, Leo. Somewhere in Heaven Id like to think my Dad is thinking the same thing.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Cool, cool... Ive seen some very interesting ant patterns, too. The most innovative has to be an ant made from hot-melt glue!
Me, Im more interested in the classic dubbed body styles. Im fairly convinced that fish perceive an item as food, rather than seeing it through a magnifier's view. In other words, if it looks like it belongs, and it generally appears to be food, then it's a maybe - and a maybe is good enough. They cannot wait around for more confirmation, or some other fish will get it. This must certainly apply to our less than living simulations.

Yours IS interesting, though, with the slick finish. What did you use as a body material, beneath the nail polish?

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

So I guess this imitates a sinking, or drowned ant? Probably a good thing to cast beneath trees, shrubs or overhanging wood, mimicking a clumsy ant with the bad luck to fall in....

Along these lines, I read something the other day that may interest you. It was a discussion of ant patterns, but it also devoted some part of the work to describing ant biology and their life cycle(would that be "ant"-omology?).

Its main focus was in describing the actual ants fish find in the water. There are, essentially, two kinds of ants which concern us:

1. Non-flying

2, Flying

Your thread-and-shellac version would be a non-flying ant simulation.

Unfortunately, the article did a good job of explaining why these are NOT the ants fish encounter MOST often. This isn't to say they don't exist, of course. But the ants our finny friends are most likely to be feeding on are FLYING ants. Here's why.

All successful ant colonies will eventually divide and swarm during the the warm season. This is due to population pressure, incursion by other species and just the mysterious urgings of Ant Life. The reason for this swarming behavior is relocation. This is how they perpetuate their species - they swarm up, take to the air and fly off to establish new groups. The timing of this varies among the species, so there are always some ants on the wing. I found some colonies in my yard, TODAY, that were preparing to swarm - and its October.

When a colony swarms, it is en masse. A LARGE portion of the colony population literally leaves, creating an airborne formicary looking for a home. But there is a downside to all this nomadic trekking: ants are notoriously poor fliers. They are at the whim of the Wind and Elements.

Most find somewhere to land and start anew - maybe YOUR yard. But, some are not so lucky, and these are the ones that most often make it into the water. But this is still a significant number in the grand scheme. Compared to the terrestrial ants that MIGHT accidentally fall in the drink, the flying variety to DO end up swimming outnumber the rest. And as this suggests, these are WINGED ants.

So, if you want to maximize your odds of catching fish on ant patterns, you should include mid-body (thorax) wings and/or hackle to simulate the little airborne buggers.Something to think about, eh?

[Leo Nguyen]

Mike, looks like we turned another person into a fly tying monster. LOL!

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

I dont know about that, Leo. I'm just copying what others have done. I stand on the shoulders of giants and reach...

Someday I'll create my own pattern like Jedi Dick. THEN Ill be a monster.

[DAVID L EITUTIS]

I KNOW YOU WILL MAKE A WINNER OF YOUR OWN DAVID AND AM SURE IT WILLLLLL BE ALOT SOONER THAN LATER. YOU ARE RIGHT about creating your own stuff , but lots of fella's like me have nothing better to do with their time than think stuff up. That's how I came up with the stingers. Took me months to figure out how to dub marabou , BUT ONCE I DID IT WAS ON !!!!!!! YOU'LL GET THERE MY FRIEND , JUST BE PERSISTENT AS I KNOW YOU ARE ......

[Allen Morgan]

Terrestrial (non-flying) ants often get washed/knocked into the water during a rainstorm.  Just after (or during, if you're brave), is a good time to toss non-flying ants up under the over-hanging limbs on the bank.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Dead on.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

No offense taken - I like to share what I find out. It's hard to know when dealing with a guy of your experience just what you may know. So I don't hold back, either way. I remember that any number of people might read this, and they might be like me - raw and new. 

I've got some floating ant patterns that use foam and brush bristles, if you want them. What you say makes perfect sense. We do know that terrestrial ants get into the water for many reasons - high water as you suggest, or passing rain showers, etc. So it is not a bad idea to pattern both flying and terrestrials.

I'm keying on the flying kind for several reasons:

a. They are common through the season, rain or shine, high water or not. A little breeze on the water and the fish hear the dinner bell. No "special" conditions required.

b. Most flying ants I see around my home are fairly large - easier to tie.

c. I love messing around with hackle! 

Maybe you'll get your ant perfected and we'll have the Chell Ant to copy!

[Allen Morgan]

I apologize beforehand for the thread hijack.

Hmmm......you want to see a big ant?

http://www.alexanderwild.com/keyword/male%20ant

This is a male Driver Ant, a.k.a. Siafu, Sausage Fly, etc.  Some of the first pics have the guy's fingers in the shot, so you get a sense of scale.

On the subject of Hackle - Last week I made an undercover trip over to BPS, without the other half's knowledge.  I was intent on buying some special floats for Bluegill and Crappie.  However, I wandered over to the fly-tying section, and took a good hard look at their dry-fly hackle.  I got to looking at a half-neck of Grizzly hackle.  OMG!  The half-neck I have has about half the bulk of the new ones!  Makes me think, it's really worth the money, with all the flies I could turn out.  Of course, it's going to be awhile before I need to buy one (next year, at least, maybe the year after).  I did pick up a half-neck of brown dry-fly hackle this past Spring, but have barely used it.  I might have to start....