TO FISH FLOATING FLY 97 



During the rise of the nymphs to the surface, 

 when about to assume the dun state, they are 

 often taken by the trout with avidity, and fre- 

 quently when the nymph has neared the sur- 

 face a trout taking it will visibly disturb the 

 surface or break water again in dry fly par- 

 lance called " bulging." 



Ground-feeding or tailing trout and trout 

 feeding in mid-water upon nymphs floating up 

 to the surface bulging trout are manifestly 

 not genuinely rising fish. To consider briefly 

 once more the life history of the Ephemeridae : 

 when the " hatch " is on, the nymph upon 

 reaching the surface splits open the nymphal 

 envelope and at once takes wing as a dun 

 an ephemeral fly in the sub-imago or first 

 winged state. When the duns are thus hatch- 

 ing the fly may float for some little distance 

 while ridding itself of the nymphal envelope 

 and drying its wings for flight; a rise to the 

 fly at this time is a true rise. It would seem, 

 however, from very close observation of the 

 water during a good many plentiful hatches of 

 duns, that only an occasional insect, as com- 

 pared with the great numbers hatching, re- 

 mains upon the water for any appreciable time 

 while undergoing the metamorphosis from 

 nymph to dun the change is in most cases 



