THE FLIES FIT FOE EVERY MONTH. 97 



CHAPTER V. 



A MONTHLY LIST OF FLIES FO1R THE SEASON. 



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As a general rule, it will be found that the earliest 

 spring flies have bodies of a greenish or olive colour. 

 The angler should never fly-fish in February with- 

 out an olive-bodied fly, which will remain a good 

 general one throughout March and April, unless 

 those months be very fine indeed. Mixed with 

 green and olive-bodied flies you must have brown, 

 red, and yellow-bodied ones ; and they will be 

 found the earliest and most killing flies. In the 

 above months artificial flies must be dressed large 

 and full, and their general wings must be made of 

 the longest fibres of the starling's wing-feathers. 

 The flies that kill in February will continue good 

 in March; and if the weather be open in the 

 former month, March flies may be looked upon as 

 February ones. 



Olive fly. Body of dark olive mohair ; wings, 

 a starling's wing-feather, to stand upright; tail, 

 two whisks of a mottled mallard's feather ; to be 

 tipped with a lap of silver tinsel. This fly may 

 be advantageously varied by mixing with the 

 H 



