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TroutFodder

Brachycentrus, anyone?

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Brachycentrus caddisflies are common in a lot of our foothills trout stream here in Alberta. Even though the larval case provides great camouflage, trout do learn that morsels in the drift with this squared-off look have nutritional value and quickly form a search image for them. Whenever I see good numbers of the cased larvae attached to the rocks, I know that some invariably end up in the drift (oftentimes intentionally as they migrate to better feeding grounds). In the absence of a hatch, and with good numbers of the larvae present, a Brachycentrus larva imitation becomes a great pattern to use.

I have been experimenting in an attempt to create a fly that mimics not just the squared off look but also the tapered shape. So far the pattern below is the closest I have come (squared but not tapered). It starts with a short length of square brass tubing glued over the hook. I then wind on a base of dark brown thread and then accent it with medium brown, light brown, and white thread (I don't worry if the brass shows through in places as it adds to the color contrasts. The whole body is then covered in head cement or Hard as Nails. The fly is finished off with a tuft of dubbing to imitate the thorax of the larva as it reaches our in a attempt to regain a hold on the stream bottom. This fly sinks quickly and works very well - not just on trout, but also on mountain whitefish.

I have seen artfully tied Brachycentrus larva using split quills that look very realistic but my preference is for patters that can be quickly tied with just enough effort to get the job done. I am interested to see if anyone out there has a go-to Brachycentrus larva pattern that they could share here - or if anyone has any advise to improve on my current pattern.

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You can collect the shed cases after the hatch and dry them out. Coat them with thin head cement to stabilize the cases.

After they are dried, select a straight shank hook about 1/4 longer than the case you will use. Take a look at the pattern below and tie the legs and head on the hook. Place wraps of lead wire on the hook shank and whip finish at the hook eye and cut off the thread.

http://flyanglersonline.com/flytying/fotw2/011705fotw.php

Coat the lead wire with some silicone caulk, and slide the empty case over the eye of the hook and over the lead underbody. Allow the silicone to cure.

An alternate way to tie the pattern is to use a black bead at the rear of the hook for the caddis head with a black thread dam behind it to keep it from slipping down the hook bend. The bead is put on the hook with the small hole end facing toward the rear of the hook against the thread ball.

This method can be seen in the Autumn 2011 issue of Fly Tyer Magazine, pp 44 - 51. 

Contact Fly Tyer if you want a back issue.

https://www.flytyer.com/

 

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Thanks for the information SilverCreek. The first link routed me back to this post but I just copied and pasted the text to get me there:)

I have tied a few flies in the past using empty cases but never made the connection of tying the fly with the head towards the hook bend. I like the idea and look of using a bead at the back end with some hackle sticking out for the legs, as in your examples. It looks more realistic and doesn't seem to difficult to tie. 

I will have to keep an eye open for more empty cases to scavenge and try tying a few like that. I do know that when Brachycentrus pupates, they move to the slower current on the backside of a rock and attach their case with the skinny case end towards the rock. If the wide end is open (see photo), the pupa has emerged and the case is fair game - but if the end is still sealed, it is best to leave it as you found. And of course the live larvae should be left undisturbed as well. 

I'm not the most artistic fly tier but will try to post a photo or two once I get a few tied.

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15 hours ago, TroutFodder said:

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That looks great.  Have you tried creating a taper by building up thread around the brass casing?  Or does that round out the square too much?

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On 9/13/2021 at 4:25 AM, niveker said:

That looks great.  Have you tried creating a taper by building up thread around the brass casing?  Or does that round out the square too much?

That is something I have not tried. It may work OK on the smaller size without rounding it out too much  - I might give that a go as well. 

I like my pattern with the brass core - it sinks quickly and the fish seem to be good with it. But I also like the possibility of the more realistic look based on the information SilverCreek provided. I will be out on my home stream this weekend and keeping an eye out for any lingering empty cases. Looks like more experimentation is in order - I will try to post any results I come up with.

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