Although an extremely simple tie, the Zebra midge is an essential pattern to have in your box all year round. Tie it in all hook sizes from a 12 to a 20 and in any colour you fancy, be it a traditional black, or go all out, and do some in super vivid attractor colours, you won’t be disappointed!
Zebra midge pattern
- Hook: Barbless grub hook # 12-20
- Bead: 2.8 mm silver slotted Tungsten bead
- Tying thread: Sheer 14/0 Black
- Rib: UTC Ultra wire silver
- Thorax: Peacock herl
How to tie Zebra midge fly
History of the Zebra Midge
The Zebra Midge fly pattern was first developed by Ted Welling, in the 1990s. It was originally designed to imitate a chironomid midge larva and quickly gained popularity among fly fishermen for its simplicity and effectiveness.
Fishing with the Zebra Midge
The Zebra Midge is a versatile pattern that can be fished in a variety of ways. It can be fished as a dropper nymph under a dry fly or indicator, or it can be fished on its own as a dead drift or swung through the current. It is particularly effective when fishing for trout in slow-moving or still water.
When fishing a Zebra Midge, it is important to vary the retrieve speed and depth until you find what the fish are responding to. The pattern can be fished slowly along the bottom, twitched to imitate a struggling insect, or swung through the current to imitate a swimming nymph.
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The Ol’ Zebra Midge is indeed a very simple pattern but I still managed to learn something from your video. I normally don’t put a peacock collar on mine but when I do I certainly had not been taking care to orient the herl exactly the way that you do. I can also apply your technique to quite a few other patterns that have peacock collars as well.