Pheasant Tail

Pheasant Tail is one of fly fishing’s most timeless nymphs, and it deserves a place in every put-and-take box. Where a Montana is large and meaty, Pheasant Tail is slim and natural, which makes it the first choice when the water is clear and the fish have become cautious. It imitates a small insect larva and simply looks like food.

When it comes into its own

Bring out Pheasant Tail when the large and mobile no longer works. Clear water, hard-fished lakes and fish that have been in a long time make rainbow trout fussy, and then a small, discreet nymph often draws takes a brightly coloured streamer never would. It is also a good choice when you see fish moving but not hunting, rather picking at small stuff.

Size and variant

Size 12 to 16 covers most of it in put and take. Go smaller and slimmer the clearer the water is and the shyer the fish seem. The fly exists both with and without a gold head. A gold head makes it sink faster and gives a little flash that can trigger a take, while an unweighted variant sinks more slowly and is fished higher and more discreetly. Keep both.

How you fish it

Pheasant Tail is fished like other nymphs: slowly and close to the depth where the fish hold. Let it sink and creep it forward in barely noticeable strips, or hang it under a fly indicator and watch. The take on a nymph is often cautious, so an indicator helps you see the takes you otherwise never would have felt. Adjust the depth until you find the fish — that matters more than the exact pattern.

Build out the nymph box

Pheasant Tail and Hare's Ear are a classic pair: one slim and dark, the other rough and lighter. Together with a heavy Montana for deep fishing they cover almost every situation where the fish take small stuff. See the whole fly overview for more patterns.