Red Fox Squirrel nymph - Fly of the Month

This month’s feature fly is the Red Fox Squirrel nymph. The “squirrel” nymph was created over 40 years ago by Dave Whitlock. It is what we call a suggestive pattern, that is, it doesn’t imitate anything totally, but a lot of bugs partially. The main feature of the fly is the fur used to dub the body. The abdomen is from the belly of the red fox squirrel mixed with antron and the thorax is the darker fur from the back of the squirrel blend with antron dubbing. To make it easier to tie, a company has already blended the dubbings. These blends are ready to use and I have them at the shop. This fly can be modified in many ways such as adding legs, a bead head, or maybe some CDC in place of the hen hackle. This is one of the most versatile flies there is so tie some up and try them this spring.

RECIPE

Hook – 2 or 3x nymph hook
Thread – black or dark brown
Tail – hare’s mask guard hairs
Abdomen – red fox squirrel abdomen blend
Thorax – red fox squirrel thorax blend
Rib – small gold oval
Hackle – mottled brown hen hackle