One of the great things about bluegills and other panfish is their willingness to take flies off the surface. In the world of fly fishing, dry fly fishing holds top honors. I have known a few fly fishing anglers that will only fish a dry fly. If they can not fish a dry, they will not fish! Although not a dry fly purist, I enjoy the topwater take as much as the next guy. So if I have an opportunity to fish a floating fly, I take it, every time!

The angler who chases panfish with a fly has a mind-numbing variety of flies to choose from. Traditional dry flies, hair bugs, foam bugs, and poppers will all work if the fish are looking up. As we move into the spring and summer, terrestrial insects become an essential food source on the ponds and small lakes that I fish near home. The shorelines of these bodies of water are buzzing with flying and crawling terrestrial insects and many of them find their way into the water.

Before we go any further, it may be helpful to define the term "terrestrial insect." When I refer to a terrestrial insect, I am referring to land-based insects like ants, beetles, spiders, grasshoppers, and the endless variety of flying insects that exist like bees, moths, flies, etc. Insects that live near water are going to end up wet at some point. When this happens with enough frequency that fish very quickly recognize them as a viable food source.

Early in the season the top water bite is slow. This is probably due to water temperature and slow metabolisms but I often wonder about that. I have had some excellent dry fly fishing just after ice-out during a good midge hatch when the water is probably at its coldest. If bluegills are willing to rise for midges in water in the high thirties, why does it refuse a dry fly a little later in the season when the water is warming? I have a theory that they don't recognize the fly as food. Once the weather warms and insects are crawling and flying around, they find their way into the water more often, and the fish begin to react positively to them. Fast forward into late spring/early summer, and the rings caused by fly landing on the surface of the water don't even have a chance to dissipate before the fly is snatched. Once we approach fall most aquatic insects have hatched for the year and the only insects available to fish are often terrestrials. As I mentioned earlier, you have a lot of options when it comes to selecting a terrestrial pattern. Here is a rundown on some of my favorite terrestrial fly patterns.

Ants

Ants are one of my favorite terrestrial patterns, whether I am knee-deep in a trout stream or prowling the banks of a warm water pond in my kayak. A simple foam cylinder ant pattern with a ring of hackle at its middle is about as complicated as you have to get with panfish. They quickly recognize that silhouette and will usually eat them without hesitation. There are times when a winged ant is the ticket. Ants and termites will release tens of thousands of flying insects from their mounds several times a year. These winged males and females mate and move off to form new colonies. If one of these swarms occur near the water, it is almost a guarantee that a large number of them will end up in the water. This activity often causes a feeding frenzy with fish rising everywhere, so always keep a couple of winged versions in a few different sizes in your fly box. When it comes to ants, don't ignore the sinking variety, either. An epoxy bodied, sinking ant fished as a dropper off of a floating pattern can be deadly.

Beetles

Beetles are another go-to terrestrial pattern for panfish. They are often overlooked as a terrestrial pattern in warm water fly fishing. There are about 400,000 species of beetles, constituting almost 40% of all insects and 25% of all known animal life. So chances are fish are going to see them on the menu on a regular basis! The great thing about beetle patterns is they are a little larger than ants and easier to see on the water, especially if you tie them with an indicator. Another good thing about beetle imitations is they can be straightforward to tie. Although you can produce excellent beetle imitations with natural materials like deer hair, foam is easier to work with and can be used to create great-looking patterns. Another popular beetle imitation is a pattern called the UFO. I consider it more of a generic terrestrial but it has answered the call on more that one occasion when beetles were on the menu.

Spiders

The foam spider is the quintessential panfish fly. Foam spiders in either a floating or sinking form are deadly panfish patterns. Your terrestrial panfish box should have a variety of both floating and sinking foam spiders. Don't be afraid to include some seemingly outlandish colors as well. One of my favorite foam spiders is pink with white legs and of course you can never go wrong with yellow. There is nothing like either of these colors combinations in the natural world, but the fish don't seem to care!

Hoppers and Crickets

Every bait fisherman nows that nothing beats a live cricket for catching bluegills! Hoppers and crickets are right at the top of the list when it comes to panfish terrestrial patterns. Because of their size, they float well and are an excellent option for dropper rigs when you want to suspend a second sinking fly behind it. They land on the water with a fish attracting slap and their moving rubber legs draw fish in for the kill.

The "Generic Terrestrial"

The generic terrestrial is my favorite type of terrestrial pattern. They don't necessarily imitate any particular insect but look buggy enough that they could be just about anything. Again foam is the material of choice for this type of pattern. You can achieve excellent results combining foam with a natural material like deer hair to produce flies that are both beautiful to look at and highly effective! Generic terrestrials are also a category of flies where you can let your imagination run wild at the fly tying vise. I have a bunch of patterns that are a crazy combination of foam, fur, hair, and rubber legs that fish cannot resist. Two of my favorites are the Fat Albert and the Mega Foam Indi Hopper. Both of these flies will float a good sized nymph or wet fly making them excellent choices fpr dropper rigs.

Bees and Wasps

All of the fish I have caught on be patterns have taught one thing, Bluegills don’t feel the sting! Not only do they have no problem with the stinging end of a yellow jacket, wasp or bee, but they also seem to relish them.  A misguided yellow jacket that finds itself struggling on the surface of the water does not linger there for long.   These hornets disappear in a slurp, and the only trace of their existence is a vanishing set of concentric rings on the surface of the water.  Do bluegills and other fish get stung as they take one of these insects off the water?  If they do, it does not affect them, or their tiny brains don’t associate the discomfort with the food source because they seem to key in on these insects when they are available to them.  I find these patterns particularly effective in the fall when these insects are the most active.

If you don’t regularly fish terrestrial patterns you are missing out on some great top water fishing. Terrestrial patterns are a lot of fun to tie and even more fun to fish! Give them a try!

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