Prince Nymph

Nymph imitating stoneflies and caddis, for trout. Intermediate. Doug Prince.

A forked brown biot tail, a peacock herl body ribbed with gold, a brown hen collar and two white biot horns, behind a gold bead.

Materials

Steps

  1. Slide on bead: brass bead Slide the brass bead round the bend and up to the eye, small hole first.
  2. Add weight: lead-free wire Wrap the lead-free wire in touching turns from halfway along the shank to 85% of the way along the shank. Ten or twelve turns, pushed up into the bead.
  3. Attach thread Attach the thread at 85% of the way along the shank with a few turns and trim the tag end. Build a dam behind the wire and cover it.
  4. Wrap thread Wrap the thread to the start of the bend in touching turns.
  5. Tie in: brown goose biots Tie in the brown goose biots, leaving 1.3× the gape sticking out behind. One biot each side, concave sides out, so they fork apart.
  6. Tie in: gold wire Tie in the gold wire with a few firm thread turns. On the near side.
  7. Tie in: peacock herl Tie in 4 strands of peacock herl with a few firm thread turns. By the tips.
  8. Wrap thread Wrap the thread to 86% of the way along the shank in touching turns.
  9. Wind: peacock herl Wind the peacock herl forward to 86% of the way along the shank in 9 turns. Twist the herls into a rope; slightly fatter toward the front.
  10. Tie off: peacock herl Tie off the peacock herl with a few thread turns and trim the excess.
  11. Wind: gold wire Wind the gold wire forward to 86% of the way along the shank in 5 turns. Counter-wound, to protect the herl.
  12. Tie off: gold wire Tie off the gold wire with a few thread turns and trim the excess.
  13. Tie in: brown hen hackle Tie in the brown hen hackle with a few firm thread turns.
  14. Wrap thread Wrap the thread to 90% of the way along the shank in touching turns.
  15. Wind: brown hen hackle Wind the brown hen hackle forward to 90% of the way along the shank in 3 turns. Sweep the fibres back and down.
  16. Tie off: brown hen hackle Tie off the brown hen hackle with a few thread turns and trim the excess.
  17. Trim: brown hen hackle Clip the fibres of the brown hen hackle on top close to the body, leaving a flat seat for the wing.
  18. Tie in: white goose biots Tie in the white goose biots, leaving one and a half times the gape sticking out behind, angled about 18° up from the shank. Crossed on top, in a V, curving down over the body.
  19. Whip finish Form a small head, whip finish with 5 turns and cut the thread. Behind the bead.

History

Its forerunner, the Brown Forked Tail, is credited (Wikipedia, citing Ken McCoy among others) to the brothers Don and Dick Olson of Bemidji, Minnesota, in the 1930s, with a black ostrich herl body and white biot wings curving up. Doug Prince of Oakland, California, gave it a peacock body and turned the wings down. He took up tying in 1943, by Dennis Bitton's account, though Trout Unlimited has him first tying the fly in the 1930s. Prince tied for his friend Buz Buszek, who, rushing out his catalogue, forgot what Prince called the fly and listed it as the Prince Nymph. Prince's own dressing, published in 1966, has no bead; the bead and lead came later.

Fishing it

A searching nymph, fished at or near the bottom, or as the dropper below a dry fly. In big sizes it reads as a stonefly nymph, in middling ones as a caddis. Once the drift is done, a few strips back, wet-fly fashion, can still bring a take.

Sources