Tiny Baetis mayflies are perhaps the most commonly encountered and imitated by anglers on all American trout streams due to their great abundance, widespread distribution, and trout-friendly emergence habits.
This Skwala nymph still has a couple months left to go before hatching, but it's still a good representative of its species, which was extremely abundant in my sample for a stonefly of this size. It's obvious why the Yakima is known for its Skwala hatch.
This is the first fully formed caddis pupa (technically, a pharate adult) that I've collected and photographed alive and healthy. I'll put a video of this specimen online soon, too.
Sayfu on Oct 5, 2012October 5th, 2012, 5:54 am EDT
My approach would be to tie a small soft hackle, metal bead headed, the abdomen ribbed with small copper wire over a pale green acrylic yarn I use. The rest of the yarn strand gets combed out, and laid back over the body. Then a peacock herl thorax, and a soft hackle "APPLIED" on a #16 caddis/pupa hook that is short shank, and a wider gape for better hooking/holding. I want my hackle to extend back beyond the hook bend. I use all kinds of soft hackle game bird feathers for hackle...Sage Grouse, and Sharptail Grouse lately, but Ruff Grouse lately as well, Hungarian Partridge of course, and duck feathers. There are some great soft hackle feathers that come off ducks.That yarn I get in the craft shop, and it is J. & P. Coats yarn, 4 strand small that you can separate, and use as many strands as needed. I have it in a honey gold, green, and yellow. Great stuff, makes tying easy. I either go for some shine with a copper metal bead, or go black. I watched Lawson tie a similar fly for a caddis emerger this Spring, and he prefers a black bead, but he fishes Spring Creek waters while I am a tailwater guy for the most part.
Sayfu on Oct 5, 2012October 5th, 2012, 12:01 pm EDT
I see the yarn I use I identified is a synthetic. It has fuzzies coming off it as well. The green, and yellow are pastel colors that I like, and the golden yellow has an amber hue to it.