The pattern notebook · nymph
K.I.S.S. Damselfly Nymph
How do you tie a K.I.S.S. Damselfly Nymph?
K.I.S.S. Damselfly Nymph is a nymph fly pattern for Bass, Sunfish, Bluegill, Panfish. Find its 6 materials and 4 tying steps below.
- Difficulty
- 1 of 5
- Target species
- Bass, Sunfish, Bluegill, Panfish
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At the vise
Materials
- Streamer Hook, TMC 5263, sizes 8-12
- Thread (70 Denier), Olive
- Bead Chain Eyes, Small, Silver
- Lead Wire, .015"
- Olive Marabou
- Ice Dub, Olive
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Tying instructions
Color Selection - While I've tied this fly in chartreuse on a handful of occasions, I've found it to be much more effective in natural shades. Stick with Olive, Black or Brown for best results.
Size Up - In general, I keep this fly fairly small and sparse when imitating a damselfly nymph. However, if dragonfly nymphs or small crayfish are on the menu, consider upsizing that hook and adding a little more bulk to that dubbed body.
Going Deep - As noted in the material list, consider adding some wraps of Lead-free wire as an underbody when fishing deeper water. This can also help bulk up your fly's profile when attempting to imitate a dragonfly nymph or small crayfish.
Substitutions - There's not a great deal of room for substitutions on a pattern this simple. However, there's no harm in experimenting with dubbing options for the body. I'm partial to the Hare'e Ice Dub dubbing, but feel free to try any "buggier" dubbing that you have on hand.