How would you explain it?

My old long-lost fishing buddy, who now lives in
Australia, was visiting. We wanted to float the Yellowstone
but it was blown out, the one day we had.

So we drove up to a high-altitude place where there are
several well-known cutthroat creeks. One of them looked like
chocolate pudding, so we hiked into the lower end of
lower Shoe-creek and fished 'til noon, working our way back up stream.
There was no midday hatch and they just weren't taking hoppers.

We both worked hard with small PMDs and took a few hard-earned fish.
I got impatient and put on a homemade Twister-tail diver, and
nailed at least a half a dozen fish. But you need an 8-weight rod
to cast that sort of thing, and I had a wisply 5-weight in my hand.

We gave up on Shoe-creek at noon, hiked out and drove over to Wide-about
creek, where we absolutely wacked'em. But I did discover they would
only look at your fly once. They'd either take or refuse, and then
that was it. So I moved quickly, wading fast upstream, nicking
6-8 fish at each pool, and actually hooking and landing maybe one
or two at each spot.

Then I realized I was fishing out in front of my friend, who
I was supposed to be entertaining. I waded back downstream, with
hat in hand, and appoligized. But Patrick knitted his brow
and said "I've seen the same thing. They either take on the first
drift or not at all."

I was fishing a big foam hopper, which they would only look at once.
My buddy was fishing an itty-bitty, hard-to-see Black Caddis,
which they would only look at once.

But here's the punchine:
The wouldn't take the hopper after the first drift. But they'd still
take the Black Caddis. But that too they'd only look at once.
On the way back, we hop-scotched the same water we'd fished on the
way up. And never nicked a single fish. We must have wacked
25-30 apiece on the way up.

Do they remember individual flies?.....one chance on a hopper,
and but still ready to eat a Black Caddis? But that too only once?

I don't know the explanation. But I sure did see the behavior.



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