NOTES OiN" THE MOHTHS FOR FLT-FISHIHC. 193 



MAY. 



At this season of the year the fish leave the deep water; 

 and sport on small streams is now good. The best flies 

 for this month are the Hare's Ear, Yellow Dun of May, 

 Iron Blue, and its transformation the Jenny Spinner, the 

 Alder fly, and the Yellow Sally. The Green Drake, or 

 May fly, seldom appears on any stream before the last 

 week in May or the beginning of June, under which 

 month we give a descriptive account of the various meth- 

 ods of using it. The little Iron Blue will now be found 

 very abundant upon most waters, especially in the Mid- 

 land and Southern counties. Its local appellations are 

 numerous, but being precisely the color of a piece of new 

 iron, the very appropriate and descriptive term, Iron 

 Blue, is more generally adopted. The fly appears a shade 

 lighter upon the body in this month, a mauve color pre- 

 vailing. This fly assumes no other name upon under- 

 going his change of color in the body, but is universally 

 recognized as being one and the same fly. Were this the 

 case with the larger species of duns, much complication 

 would be avoided. To the entomological student, the 

 habits of this little insect form an interesting and amus- 

 ing study. It is extremely hardy, being a lover of in- 

 clement weather. Its water nympha frequents the cold 

 spring heads during the whole summer, rising to the sur- 

 face in clouds whenever the weather happens to be dull, 

 with obscure sun. A cloudy morning will entice myriads 

 from the watery depths, the fish being in turn allured 

 from their accustomed haunts in the bed of the river to 

 the surface of the water, where they regale themselves 

 upon these prim little yacht-like insects. Great execu- 

 tion may often be effected through the medium of a good 

 copy of this especial favorite of the fish, even in the 

 hands of an indifferent rodster, though it is not to be in- 

 ferred that any artificial, or even a bad rendering of the 



