WINGED ANTS
The Winged Ants, which are the newly hatched insects, appear about the
middle of July. The time at which they appear, however, varies very
much. They appear in swarms, and when one of these swarms gets near or
on the water, the fish feed greedily upon them. They have four wings,
the anterior pair being somewhat longer than the body. These wings, when
at rest, do not fold neatly over each other, and as the insect is clumsy
in its flight, even a slight breeze is sufficient to drive many of them
out to the water.
The Ant I have seen most frequently on the water is a large Red Ant, but
smaller Red Ants and winged Black Ants are also frequently seen. The
position of the wings in relation to the body easiest to imitate is
shown in the illustration of the imitation of the Willow-fly, which has
four wings.
The Red Ant is frequently used early in June, though the natural insect
is not seen so early. The imitation, however, frequently meets with
success, though it is improbable that the trout takes the imitation for
the natural insect, especially as the wings are always put on in a
vertical position.
The bodies of all the Ants should be made fat towards the bend of the
hook, and carried well on to the bend.
As the body of the Ant is very shiny, parts of it, when the light falls
upon it, have a very brilliant appearance; therefore I have recommended
the use of tinsel.
_Red Ant_--
_Body._ Red-brown (burnt sienna) silk, thin on the shank and fat
towards and on the bend of the hook, ribbed with gold tinsel.
_Hackle._ Red.
_Wings._ Transparent part of a starling's quill feather.
_Hook._ 0--2.
_Black Ant_--
_Body._ Black silk, ribbed with silver tinsel.
_Hackle._ Black.
_Wings._ As Red Ant.
_Hook._ 0--1.