Scuds don’t get nearly the credit they deserve. For an insect that makes up such a substantial portion of a fish’s diet over the course of a year, they are rarely talked about and more importantly, rarely fished.
The Pregnant Scud is surprisingly agile in the water but its unpredictable movements can make it challenging at times to fish correctly. Watch a few videos of scud behavior in the water and it will give you much better sense of the type of action you should give when drifting or retrieving a scud pattern.
Pregnant Scud
This is an easy-to-tie version of a scud pattern that is meant to imitate a pregnant scud, showing a clear orange coloration near the middle of the body.
Equipment
Materials
- Hook: size 14-18 scud hook; Daiichi 1130
- Thread: 8/0 or UTC 70 denier
- Tail: mallard flank
- Body: olive crystal dubbing
- Rib: small silver wire
- Shellback: 1/8" scud back
Instructions
- Set up your fly tying vise
- Fix the hook in the vise's jaw
- Push play on the video tutorial