The fly box · No. 30 of 36
Deep Sparkle Pupa
A caddis pupa drifting near the bottom before it rises to hatch, wrapped in a bright sheath of gas.
- Kind
- Nymph
- Hook sizes
- 12–16
- Season
- Spring, summer, autumn
- For
- Trout and grayling
- At the vice
- An involved tie
The dressing
| Hook | Standard or heavy-wire wet fly hook, barbless, sizes 12–16 |
|---|---|
| Thread | Brown or to match the body, 8/0 |
| Tail | None |
| Body | Underbody of chopped Antron mixed half and half with soft fur dubbing, in green, yellow, ginger or grey, with an overbody of Antron yarn drawn forward as a loose, see-through bubble |
| Rib | None |
| Hackle | A few soft fibres of partridge or grouse along each side as legs, reaching the hook point |
| Wing | None |
| Also | Underbody of lead-free wire; head of brown marabou fibres wound round the thread, or dark fur dubbing |
Tying it
- Wrap lead-free wire over the middle of the shank and bind it down.
- At the bend, tie in one length of Antron yarn on top of the shank and one underneath, then comb both out.
- Dub the underbody over the rear two thirds of the shank.
- Draw the top and bottom yarn forward so the fibres spread round the body, and tie them down loosely.
- Tease the veil outward with a needle so it stands off the body as a bubble.
- Tie in a few partridge fibres along each side.
- Wind or dub the head, whip finish and varnish.
Fishing it
Before and during a sedge hatch, when splashy rises begin but floating flies are refused, fish this near the bed. Cast up and across with 5X (0.15 mm) tippet and enough slack for it to sink, follow it down on a dead drift, then check the line and let the current lift the fly toward the surface at the end. Most takes come on that rise, and they are solid. It pairs well under a bushy sedge pattern, the dry fly marking the drift of the pupa below.
Where it comes from
Gary LaFontaine spent years watching caddis underwater and set out his findings in his book Caddisflies. He saw that the rising pupa carries air beneath its skin and shines, and found in Antron yarn a fibre that holds tiny bubbles in the same way. The loose veil drawn over the body is the heart of the pattern, not a decoration.