I recall an online article or a link from a post, where a contributor states that since there are only 5 common familes of flies hatching from british waters that there is only a need for 5 dry (emerger/dun/adult) fly patterns and lists them... something like that anyway.

While this is controversial I am interested in re-reading this piece because I'd like to streamline my tying. Debate if you wish, but please tell me where to find the piece if you know where it is. It may have linked from a "things you wish you had known when you started fly fishing" thread or it may not?

Yours hopefully

Paul.

Sounds a bit like Pat O'Reilly's 'Magnificent Seven' from his 'Matching the Hatch' book.

The concept always seemed a little over-simplistic to me, but then I do like lots of patterns in me box to choose from

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Game fish are too valuable to be caught only once - Lee Wulff

I think it boiled down to various sized Greenwell's Glories in the end.... cr@p book IMHO.




If however wrongfoot is refering to the five 'Families' of the 'Order' Ephemeroptera (46 British species - give or take) then:

Baetidae (agile darters) 14

Ephemerellidae (spiny moss-crawlers) 2

Ephemeridae (burrowing Mayflies) 3

Heptageniidae (stream/stone clingers) 11

Leptophlebiidae (prongills) 6


The totals don't quite add up. The quite scarce Potomanthus isn't now a burrower and [i]Caenis[/] are a curse.

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Save the softmouth trout

Stewart Croft and Dave Calvert did some articles in Flyfishing and flytying a couple of years ago. They work on the principal of having one fly to represent several different species. It certainly reduced the number of fly boxes I carry. Works for me.

John H

Not sure those were the articles but that's some other good stuff so thanks very much for the replies.

I'd love to read the Croft and Calvert articles. Do you still have a copy John? Does anyone else?