Midge / EmergersDHE (Deer Hair Emerger)
Bob Wyatt's Deer Hair Emerger represents an insect caught half in, half out of the surface film while shedding its nymphal shuck. A natural deer hair wing holds it up while an olive hare abdomen and hare's ear thorax hang below, ribbed with nothing but the tying thread's own tag end.
Spring, Summer, Fall
Intermediate
Trout
Feb 2026
Overview
Bob Wyatt designed this emerger around the idea that trout key on insects stalled in the film rather than fully upright duns. The tying note calls for floatant on the wing and thorax only, leaving the abdomen untreated so it hangs below the surface like a natural still working free of its shuck. Ribbing with the thread's own tag end keeps the recipe short. It's a dependable choice for midge and mayfly activity on both moving water and stillwaters through the warmer months.
Where to Buy This Fly
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Materials
- Hook:
- Partridge GRS 6A #12
- Thread:
- Uni-thread 6/0, Brown
- Rib:
- Tying thread tag end
- Wing:
- Deer hair, natural
- Abdomen:
- Hare, dyed olive (or color to match the natural)
- Thorax:
- Hare's ear, natural
Behavior & Presentation
Natural Behavior: Insects break through surface tension while extracting from nymphal shucks, hanging half-emerged with wings folded. This film-bound stage triggers selective feeding on vulnerable prey.
Where Trout Eat It: Fish cruise the film in calm water, intercepting trapped emergers in feeding lanes.
How to Fish It: Present in the surface film with dead drifts, maintaining drag-free float through prime zones.
Best Water: Slicks, tail-outs, flat water, and foam lines in spring creeks and tailwaters.
Strike Type: Subtle sips with minimal surface disturbance as fish confidently take film-trapped prey.
Fishing Strategy
Rigging Suggestions: 10-12ft 5X-6X leader. In technical water, 6X provides delicate presentation. Consider small yarn indicator 3-4ft above fly for subtle takes.
Seasonal Timing: Prime during mayfly and caddis emergences May-September. Most valuable when trout feed selectively on transitioning insects. Best during morning and evening emergence periods because timing concentrates vulnerable prey.
Pro Tips: Apply floatant only to deer hair wing post, allowing body to sink slightly. This creates perfect emerger silhouette triggering strikes from selective trout during difficult hatches.
Entomology
As nymphs ascend to emerge, they penetrate the surface film but often hang suspended there, half-in and half-out of the water while the adult form takes shape inside the splitting exoskeleton. Fish recognize this reliable feeding opportunity, cruising to intercept insects trapped in the vulnerable transition where they drift slowly with the current.
- Organism Type
- insect
- Life Stage
- general
