Overview
A hybrid nymph that crosses a Zebra Midge with a Pheasant Tail. It has a silver tungsten bead, a black pheasant tail tail, a black thread body with bright silver wire ribbing, a black squirrel dubbing thorax, a red floss wingcase and black Krystal Flash legs. The SOS is an excellent attractor in Euro or indicator rigs, offering both visibility and subtle realism.
Related patterns
Behavior & presentation
- Natural Behavior
- Small Baetis nymphs and midge pupae drift in large numbers through tailwaters and spring creeks, especially before and during hatches.
- Where Trout Eat It
- Near the bottom and in the middle of the water column in riffles, runs and seams where small nymphs drift.
- How to Fish It
- Dead drift it under an indicator or as a dropper below a dry fly, keeping it near the bottom.
- Best Water
- Tailwater riffles, runs, seams and tail-outs, plus spring creek channels.
- Strike Type
- Watch for small indicator dips or pauses, or the dry fly ticking under.
Fishing strategy
- Rigging Suggestions
- Fish it as a dropper under a dry, the way Spencer Higa likes it best, or in a two-fly nymph rig under an indicator. Use 5X-6X fluorocarbon tippet, with split shot in faster water.
- Seasonal Timing
- Fished year-round. It does most of its work on tailwaters and spring creeks in fall, winter and early spring, when small midges and mayfly nymphs dominate.
- Pro Tips
- Spencer Higa, a Utah guide, built it on the Provo as a cross between a Zebra Midge and a Pheasant Tail. It's his go-to when nothing else is working. Fish it in #16-20; the red wingcase gives fish a trigger without adding size.
From River & Run
Open River & RunWhere to fish it
Rivers anglers pair with this fly, with local shops that stock it.
River details and fly shops from River & Run, our sister site.
Entomology
Baetis nymphs are small, agile swimmers that dart between rocks and weeds in tailwaters and spring creeks. They drift in large numbers before and during hatches, and trout feed on them selectively near the bottom and in the middle of the water column.
- Order
- Ephemeroptera
- Family
- Baetidae
- Common name
- Blue-winged Olive
- Organism
- insect
- Life stage
- nymph
Pattern details
- Stillwater
- Moving Water
- Rocky Mountain
- Pacific Northwest
- dead-drift
- indicator-nymph
- baetis-hatch
- midge-hatch
- guide-fly
- attractor
- searching-pattern
- low-clear-water
- tailwater
