200 million years of training has made the salmon one of the most successful predators in the northern hemisphere...As soon as insects start flying the salmon parr has attention pointed up-wards..

The river surface is a superior hunting ground to the salmon parr and a highly hazardous area to the water insect seeking to leave the river, or that land insect struggling not to drown in it. The Atlantic salmon is a animal that throughout its youth has a very high level of surface feeding - and attention is pointed upwards as soon as temperatures rise and insects starts moving. Caddis, stone flies, mayflies and a whole line of terrestrials are on the menu. Any mark that these insects might make landing or leaving from the surface is easily detected by the salmon parr that often will have to take a hasty decision if it is to seize its quarry. It is this particular ability to detect and capture things in the surface that makes the dry fly so effective for adult salmon.

Do salmon feed in fresh water?

Even though It is generally known that adult salmon will leave behind its greedy way of life and go into a state of anorexia when entering freshwater - It is a myth that the salmon wont eat while staying in fresh water - The angler fishing with the worm will also tell you otherwise as the salmon now and then will swallow worm and hook. New science shows examples of eating behaviour among up-to 40 % of the adult salmon in the region of Northern Norway. In some rivers salmon diet would include both land and water insects.

Want to read a perort on this interesting subject ? Report made by biologist Mr. M Johanesen from University of Tromsø, Norway - Click here..

With lots of insects on the water salmon may part-take in the feast along side with its cousin the trout - and rise to the stream of hatching insects as frequent as Mr. Trout. Such rare occasions could call upon a fly that would match the hatch so to speak - But on a regular basis it is rarely necessary to match the hatch and salmon will respond well to flies that look like big caricatures rather than imitations of the insect that it is meant to portrait. The main characteristic that we want to feature in our flies is the element of entrapment - We actually want to construct a fly that will rest in the surface film with little to show under water. We have found that a light and high floating fly will out-fish the fly that is sitting low in the surface. It is in fact as if the magic or rather: deception is lost when the ability to stay high-and-dry is gone. Buy flies

A big forest ant Formicidae family Still with its wings intact. This fellow measures more than 1,3 cm. During summer months swarms of these resilient insects will leave their ant-hill´s to find new territory. Thousands of them will end up in the river system - where parr, trout and adult salmon will find them. Yet another little bug worthwhile having represented in the fly box.

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