"Peter Charles" wrote


Thanks for the suggestions guys, however, I'm hoping to find
entomology sites rather than fly tying sites so I can find the
pictures of the actual bugs rather than somebody's idea of what the
fly should be.


In my limited experience you are dead on track .... catching the real bug
and using that as a model is FAR more satisfying than imitating an imitation
..... but 99% of flies are developed the second way, varying existing
patterns without ever looking at a bug.

After your research, you'll likely end up with something similar to existing
flies but you'll fish it with much more confidence ... the key ingredient of
any pattern, imho.

I'm just started on my own selection of "copied from real models" patterns,
maybe 1/3 the bugs I fish over ... it is very worth the effort.

The first was a Trico spinner 10 years ago. After a long not very
successful day watching fish reject a store bought poly wing spinner on
Silver Creek I broke down, seined some bugs, got out the magnifier and ...
Whoa, Homer .. they don't look that much like the store bought pattern. I
dug through my stuff, tied up a couple different experiments and the next
day I hooked fish nearly at will, even broke one fish off then landed him
later with my new pattern still stuck in his jaw and got my fly back. I
got so damn arrogant that I stopped on Kilpatrick Bridge and told some guy
to pick out a fish and I'd catch it ... did catch the one he pointed to, too
G ( although I detected his "what as asshole" glance and have regretted my
arrogant display ever since then .... but that is what real models can do to
you :-)

I know it's Winter, but catching the bug is better than even a good picture