Black Digger Wasp | Low Barometer Flys
Wasp patterns are a little hard to find in the trout fly tying world, but are probably more prevalent in the panfish realm. Wasps are a valuable asset for your trout fly box for a few reasons. Starting in the spring, typically in the months of April thru October, wasps start to break free of their larval sacks. Generally lifespan ranges between 12-20 days depending on the species and there are a lot of wasp species! One thing is for certain trout dial in on them during the summer months but more specifically during barometric lows. When the weather turns cloudy, the winds shift, with a sudden temperature change animals typically start feeding. Deer, muskrat, mink, martin, hawks, and yes trout will go on feeding binges when the barometer takes a dip. It's a biological cue that tells them feed now because it's going to get nautical very soon. Trout will pass up hatch morsels and the common menu selections for larger food items. Remember trout are very opportunistic creatures. So bee patterns, spiders, cranefly, beetles, and wasps that may or may not be in season suddenly become the blue light specials. Wasps are a valuable asset to fish before storms or when weather fronts are passing. I also fish spiders and cranefly during these periods. Below is my Black Digger Wasp pattern that I developed about ten years ago.
