FLY FISHING: Ant Hatches

[John Pierce]

FLY FISHING: Ant Hatches

Submitted by Michael Corry

If you can happen to be able to be on the water after a couple of successive days of 70 degree F or 22 C weather in May you may experience the best dry fly fishing of the year.

In my 70+ years of fishing on the Island I have hit the Black Ant "Hatch" about 6 times. You only have 1-3 days of good fishing because once the fish are fed up they go off biting for a few days to weeks. What is actually happening at this time is not a hatch, it is the ants developing wings and dispersing. Once they disperse they lose their wings. If you find a lake or river with lots of big trees nearby when the ants disperse a number get blown into the water. The ants are the big Carpenter ants . There are hatches of smaller ants at other times of year but nothing matches the big Carpenter ant "hatch".

I've hit the black ant hatch" at Council Lake, at Cowichan Lake (Marble Bay), at Little Qualicum River, at Cowichan River, and at Lois Lake.

Picture below of Ant Flies I've tied that have been successful on the local ant hatch. The bodies are spun and clipped black deer hair or black float foam. Also I've found that you do better if there is no red on the fly. The wings are black hackle tips. With the deer hair or foam bodies you don't need any floatant.

Really go crazy around Victoria for larger carpenter ants.