The Swimming Baitfish is a no-nonsense destroyer of big fish! Large trout, bass, pike, and muskie are looking for meat on their menu, and baitfish, sculpin, shad, and panfish make up a large portion of the diet of these large predators. The stacked and trimmed deer-hair head of the Swimming Baitfish causes this pattern to dive and splash just beneath the surface of the water as it is retrieved in an imitation of a small wounded fish, while the weed-guard keeps the hook free from debris and ready to bite back when the big fish pounce!
For the best action, this pattern should be fished with either a floating or intermediate sinking line, a short leader of heavy test (4' of 20lb test), and jerkily stripped through the surface of the water.
Dry/Wet: Wet
Fly Category: True-Fly Pattern
Family: Baitfish
Species: Panfish, Sculpin, Shad, Minnow
Life Stage: NA