Tadpole Fly / Flies

Simple but effective black and olive tadpole

Spring has sprung in Scotland, and so the tadpoles have hatched and are getting big!

The hill lochs around Oban and Glencoe are full of them, and so are the trout. I have seen them occasionally crashing into the shallows recently, and wondered if they were going for them. So I tied up a few tadpole-looking flies to imitate them. Whether or not the trout are thinking they are tadpoles, leeches or bait fish, it doesn't really matter, because they certainly have been working.

A knot (the collective noun!) of tadpole flies

I tied a few different patterns up on size 12 wet fly hooks, with no bead. I fish them on a slow sink with a floating or sink tip line, and either strip them slowly or figure 8 them back. I tied them all with a black marabou tail, and black micro chenille body. I used either olive chenille or artificial peacock herl under the body and the head to give it a bit more of a tadpole-y look.