Scarlet Ibis
Fly of the Month 02.19
During the winter, most of the catching opportunity is underwater and the choices for the angler are wet flies, soft hackle flies, nymphs, streamers or attractor patterns such as an egg, egg cluster, San Juan worm, Y2K, Estes’ Mop Fly or a Squiggly-Wiggly.
As winter days become warmer and spring is around the corner, choose a wet fly to attract hungry trout that are simply not finding enough food. Wet fly patterns are either intended to imitate an insect rising in the water column or an attractor in the water column that gets a hungry trout’s attention. Top of the list is a pheasant tail soft hackle or any one of many colorful, attractive wet flies. Ray Bergman’s Trout is an encyclopedia of over three hundred wet fly patterns. On our list to try next is an Ibis, a wet fly so named based on the bird that provided the original feathers for the fly pattern. Modern dyed-feather substitutions now protect the Ibis.
Scarlet Ibis and White Ibis Wet Fly Group
The Scarlet Ibis or Red Ibis is named based on the bird whose feathers go into the tying. When referring to this pattern the word “scarlet” should be used. There is also a white ibis bird and White Ibis fly as well.
The Silver Ibis or Tinseled Ibis, as it is sometimes called, is so named because the body is silver instead of gold-ribbed red wool. The Split Ibis has wings of both scarlet and white ibis feathers. The following table provides an overview of the variety of Scarlet Ibis and White Ibis wet fly patterns:
Name Body Hackle Wing Tail Rib
Scarlet Ibis scarlet floss scarlet scarlet scarlet gold
Silver Ibis silver tinsel scarlet scarlet scarlet -
White Ibis white floss scarlet scarlet scarlet silver
Yellow Ibis yellow floss scarlet scarlet scarlet gold
Guinea Ibis yellow floss scarlet scarlet guinea silver
Hackle Ibis white floss scarlet - - silver
Split Ibis silver tinsel scarlet scarlet & white1 scarlet & white -
Gold Ibis gold tinsel scarlet & yellow white2 scarlet & white -
White Shoulder Ibis scarlet floss scarlet & white scarlet3 scarlet -
Scarlet & White Ibis scarlet & white4 scarlet scarlet & white scarlet & white gold
1 Split scarlet with white between
2 With scarlet stripes up the sides
3 With white stripes up the sides
4 Upper half white floss, lower half scarlet floss
The Yellow Ibis is named because the body is gold-ribbed yellow wool. The Guinea Ibis is the like the Yellow Ibis except the body is silver-ribbed yellow wool with a Guinea tail. The Hackle Ibis has a silver-ribbed white wool body but no wing or tail much like other soft hackle fly patterns. The Gold Ibis, White Shoulder Ibis and Scarlet & White Ibis each have much more variation from the original Scarlet Ibis or White Ibis a viewed in the table above.
Fish any of the Ibis wet fly patterns using the traditional wet fly method of casting the fly upstream, allow the fly to naturally drift and sink, then give the fly a tug, then slack a few times as the downstream drift continues. Finally, allow the wet fly to tail-out and then retrieve upstream with a tug, then slack motion until fully retrieved and ready to repeat the presentation cycle with a change of the drift lane.
The Ibis Wet Fly Group:
Scarlet Ibis, White Ibis
Silver Ibis (alias Tinseled Ibis)
Yellow Ibis, Gold Ibis
Guinea Ibis
Hackle Ibis
Split Ibis, White Shoulder Ibis, Scarlet & White Ibis
Fly of the Month 02.19
…. photo, steps
Tom Adams and Alen Baker
References:
Smedley, Harold Hinsdill. Fly Patterns and Their Origins, 1944
Bergman, Ray. Trout
During the winter, most of the catching opportunity is underwater and the choices for the angler are wet flies, soft hackle flies, nymphs, streamers or attractor patterns such as an egg, egg cluster, San Juan worm, Y2K, Estes’ Mop Fly or a Squiggly-Wiggly.
As winter days become warmer and spring is around the corner, choose a wet fly to attract hungry trout that are simply not finding enough food. Wet fly patterns are either intended to imitate an insect rising in the water column or an attractor in the water column that gets a hungry trout’s attention. Top of the list is a pheasant tail soft hackle or any one of many colorful, attractive wet flies. Ray Bergman’s Trout is an encyclopedia of over three hundred wet fly patterns. On our list to try next is an Ibis, a wet fly so named based on the bird that provided the original feathers for the fly pattern. Modern dyed-feather substitutions now protect the Ibis.
Scarlet Ibis and White Ibis Wet Fly Group
The Scarlet Ibis or Red Ibis is named based on the bird whose feathers go into the tying. When referring to this pattern the word “scarlet” should be used. There is also a white ibis bird and White Ibis fly as well.
The Silver Ibis or Tinseled Ibis, as it is sometimes called, is so named because the body is silver instead of gold-ribbed red wool. The Split Ibis has wings of both scarlet and white ibis feathers. The following table provides an overview of the variety of Scarlet Ibis and White Ibis wet fly patterns:
Name Body Hackle Wing Tail Rib
Scarlet Ibis scarlet floss scarlet scarlet scarlet gold
Silver Ibis silver tinsel scarlet scarlet scarlet -
White Ibis white floss scarlet scarlet scarlet silver
Yellow Ibis yellow floss scarlet scarlet scarlet gold
Guinea Ibis yellow floss scarlet scarlet guinea silver
Hackle Ibis white floss scarlet - - silver
Split Ibis silver tinsel scarlet scarlet & white1 scarlet & white -
Gold Ibis gold tinsel scarlet & yellow white2 scarlet & white -
White Shoulder Ibis scarlet floss scarlet & white scarlet3 scarlet -
Scarlet & White Ibis scarlet & white4 scarlet scarlet & white scarlet & white gold
1 Split scarlet with white between
2 With scarlet stripes up the sides
3 With white stripes up the sides
4 Upper half white floss, lower half scarlet floss
The Yellow Ibis is named because the body is gold-ribbed yellow wool. The Guinea Ibis is the like the Yellow Ibis except the body is silver-ribbed yellow wool with a Guinea tail. The Hackle Ibis has a silver-ribbed white wool body but no wing or tail much like other soft hackle fly patterns. The Gold Ibis, White Shoulder Ibis and Scarlet & White Ibis each have much more variation from the original Scarlet Ibis or White Ibis a viewed in the table above.
Fish any of the Ibis wet fly patterns using the traditional wet fly method of casting the fly upstream, allow the fly to naturally drift and sink, then give the fly a tug, then slack a few times as the downstream drift continues. Finally, allow the wet fly to tail-out and then retrieve upstream with a tug, then slack motion until fully retrieved and ready to repeat the presentation cycle with a change of the drift lane.
The Ibis Wet Fly Group:
Scarlet Ibis, White Ibis
Silver Ibis (alias Tinseled Ibis)
Yellow Ibis, Gold Ibis
Guinea Ibis
Hackle Ibis
Split Ibis, White Shoulder Ibis, Scarlet & White Ibis
Fly of the Month 02.19
…. photo, steps
Tom Adams and Alen Baker
References:
Smedley, Harold Hinsdill. Fly Patterns and Their Origins, 1944
Bergman, Ray. Trout