FLY OF THE MONTH

Red Buzzer
By Luca Montanari

NMany artificials that try to imitate a small chironomid pupa have arguable imitative qualities, both as a result of their shapes and of the improbable colours of the various parts of their body. Considering a classic buzzer within the British tradition - the abdomen of which is built with floss of different colours and with the thorax realised with shining peacock herls - we can assert that it has very little similarity to the common aquatic dipterous. For that reason, we should be surprised that a trout will be enticed to take it, mistaking it for a real insect. We should not forget, however, that a fish can attack a prey for reasons that have nothing to do with the craving for food. Curiosity and predatory instincts, for example, influence the ways the trout feeds, and many fish seem particularly sensitive to these two factors. But not only this.

The effectiveness of a fly is often due to its ability to generate phenomena of interpretation to the trout. In other words, an artificial that gives the vague idea to be similar to a tasty prey can entice the fish more easily than an exact imitation. All this is explicable with the propensity of the anglers to often use refined and very life-like artificials, which increase the trout's selectivity and suspicion towards the more imitative flies.

This problem, however, can be reduced if the fish is tempted with an unusual and unknown fly, which is vaguely similar to an inviting mouthful and appears stimulating because of its brilliant colours. In such situations, the salmonid, observing the strange "bug", can doubt about its edibility and this uncertainty can generate strong excitation, which sometimes ends in violent attack.
Extending such ideas to the case of the chironomid pupas, a trout that shows evident reluctance to accept our sophisticated imitations composed with the cul-de-canard, or with other modern ingredients, can be captured using an "ancient" Buzzer pattern: an artificial that can confuse the fish, giving it the idea to be similar to a young dipterous, but if observed carefully, has very little in common with the insect.

The Red Buzzer is an exponent of the Buzzer family that works quite well wherever we see large colonies of reddish chironomids. For its remarkable effectiveness, it can be used in many situations, including "search fishing", tying it on the leader as a dropper fly.

Tying instructions:

Step 2:
On the fixing point of the tail, I stop the end of a piece of fine copper wire and the head of a red floss spool. Next, with the thread, I realise a thin under-body along the two rear thirds of the hook shank.

Step 4:
In front of the body, I tie in two herls cut off from a peacock tail feather and I use them for realising the thorax, passing them repeatedly around the front third of the hook shank.

Step 6:
With some turns of thread around the branchial tuft, I make the head of the fly and then I whip finish it.