Rose Dragon
by Bill Luscombe
HOOK: Mustad 9672 3x long shank
ABDOMEN: 50/50 blend of olive and brown antron yarn
RIBBING: Medium copper wire or fine lead
THORAX: Olive chenille
HACKLE: Red-brown pheasant tail fibers tied in for legs.
WINGCASE: Red-brown pheasant tail fibers.
HEAD: Olive chenille
Fasten the copper wire to the butt of the hook, dub on the antron to form an abdomen just over half the length of the shank. Wrap the copper wire in the opposite direction to the dubbed body and tie off. Tie in the pheasant tail fibers on the top of the shank and then the olive chenille. Wrap the chenille forward and tie off, leaving just enough room for the head. Don't cut the chenille off.
Now grasp the pheasant fibers and pull them over the back of the thorax to form a wingcase and tie it off. Take a few pheasant fibers and tie them in on the far side of the fly, at the point where the base of the head will be, to form the left legs, then do the same on the near side.
Form the head with the remaining chenille, tie off, cut and cement. Using a pair of needle-nose pliers squeeze the abdomen into a semi flat shape to resemble the shape of the natural, and you're done.
Dragonfly nymphs should be fished right on or very near the bottom. Use a full sinking line and a short leader and slowly hand-twist or troll the fly along. Every so often you should give it a few quick pulls to imitate the insect shooting forward as if attacking prey or trying to escape a predator, then let it rest a moment or two before starting the slow retrieve again. You will often get a strike just as you start the fly moving again after letting it rest.
1 Comment
Reader Comments (1)
I like the pattern, dragons are one of my favourites. I do not see olive chenille in the picture above but rather a fully dubbed body. I think if what I see id correct, it makes a better fly than it would with chenille.
Thanks for the pattern!