Flav Small Western Green Drake Nymph

Title:

Price:

$2.75

Product Category:

Mayflies

SKU:

M301N-16

Small Western Green Drakes are commonly referred to as “flavs” and this is due to the fact that the most common species is the favilinea. (By the way, the name Small Western Green Drakes and flavs is interchangeable.) These Flavs are very important in the West and inhabit most of the Western streams. These mayflies are very similar to the larger Western Green Drake which is usually a hook size or two larger.

The differences in the larger Western Green Drakes and the smaller version called Flavs are in their behavior, the time of hatches, and the duration of hatches. In locations where both mayflies exist, the Flavs are more plentiful than their larger cousins. The Small Western Green Drake hatches are dependent on cloud cover and tend to not occur during the bright days. Often anglers will confuse these flavs with the Blue winged Olives which are much smaller.

The "Flavs" are crawler nymphs that prefer moderate to moderately fast currents and do not live in slow water. But unlike the swimmer nymphs, the burrower nymphs or the clinger nymphs, they have difficulty staying hidden. For that reason, the Small Western Green Drakes "Flavs" are more vulnerable during non-hatch periods than other types of

nymphs. To hatch, they move out of the faster water of the moderately flowing runs and riffles to the calm pockets in heavy pocket water or to the slow side of current seams in smoother water. Normally this move covers only a few feet.

During this short migration, they are readily exposed on the bottom and almost completely defenseless until they emerge into duns and fly away. Since they are completely defenseless, the trout feed on them with ease, and of course, it is also the best time to catch them on an imitation of the nymph.

Presentation:

As noted above, the Small Western Green Drake nymphs are available during non-hatch times, so trout can be taken anytime during the season with the nymph imitation. But, obviously, your odds for success will be greater during a few days prior to the hatch as well as in the mornings during the hatch prior to their emergence, Make you up and across presentation to the slow sides of the current seams or in the calmer pockets behind boulders of pocket water. Also, in pocket water streams, cast to the slower water along the banks near fast water where they may be emerging. The high sticking method of nymphing is best in most pocket water streams. A strike indicator may be used, but we prefer to fish without it which requires more attention to detect the strike so, you may choose to omit it.

Add weight as necessary, on the tippet a few inches above the fly, to keep the fly as close to the bottom as possible. Allow the fly to dead drift however, if the fly gets in slower water, pick it up lightly and move it downstream a few inches at a time until the current takes over. Be sure to watch you line for any unnatural movement such as pauses or even stops.