Scud Fly Tying Recipe:
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Hook: TMC 2487 or 2457 #12-20
Weight: .010 lead wire
Thread: 8/0 Olive dun UNI
Tail (antennae): Dyed Mallard Flank
Ribbing: 6X Mono
Shellback: Swiss Straw
Body: Smoky Olive Sow Scud Dubbing
I call this pattern the Plain Old Scud, because there is really nothing fancy about it. Of course you can tie it in a flashback version by adding a strip of pearl sheeting to the back in place of the Swiss Straw I will use here, and I suppose you could even add a bead if you wanted, but as it is presented here is the pattern I have been using for scuds in lakes and streams for the past several years. I stumbled onto the Swiss Straw back a few years back and it not only comes in a perfect olive grey color, it also becomes incredibly juicy when it gets wet. Besides, I hate doing things like everyone else does them so I had to change it up. I typically do weight my scuds as I find they get down to the fish’s level faster when sight fishing in lakes and that keeps me from having to lead a fish by thirty feet to get the fly down to his level. I like this part. I use the same scud in rivers as well, because …well, because it would be silly to have to carry weighted ones and unweighted ones. So there. And yes, before you ask, you can certainly change the color of the dubbing, shellback and tail to match whatever you want. Scuds come in all sorts of colors when they are live and various shades of orange when they’re dead, so just match the natural as close as you can and you ought to be catching fish.