LITTLE REDS August 26, 2010 - Could I have a show of hands please? Did anyone else witness that colossal flying ant hatch that took place last Wednesday afternoon? We have been cautioning anglers for a few weeks now to be aware that the event could take place during the latter stages of August and sure enough… bingo! While it is almost impossible to predict from year-to-year, the display will often bring even the most discriminating feeders to the surface on the Swift River in Belchertown, leaving them susceptible to even a mediocre imitation. There has to be sometime to the amount of calories gained per the amount of exertion extended that make red flying ants such a delicacy to all species of trout. Unlike previous years, the ants were of diminutive proportions, I would probably duplicate them with a #18 red flying ant pattern. The hatch endured with varying degrees of magnitude throughout much of the afternoon and seemed to intensify during episodes of lower wind. I have witness similar hatches on Scargo Pond in Dennis and Crystal Pond in Orleans only much later in the season. If memory serves me correctly these events can be expected to occur during the latter stages of September and early October. These land-bred insects seem to gather in rafts leaving the surface of the water to take on an almost rusty appearance. With incalculable amounts of insects available to surface feeding trout it would seem almost impossible to deceive a trout with a single imitation but this was never the case. Individuals seem to lavish in the idea of picking off a solitary insect in lieu of crashing recklessly through the minions drifting within the surface film. Trout could be further encouraged to accept your offering by inducing them to strike by imparting motion to the fly (see "Fishing the Dry Fly as a Living Insect" by Leonard Wright). This method is deadly especially when fishing other terrestrial patterns that appear clumsy and out of their element when struggling on the water's surface. With the encroaching autumn season, ants will continue to be an important supplement to the trout's diet and will remain so until the initial frost of the year. Good fishing and safe
wading, |
