TYING A FOAM ANT

Terrestrials like ants and flying ants are often blown into the waters or drop down from three branches. Then they face a threat from below. Fishes eat these, and during swarming, the numbers can be so large that the fish target ants. Then you should have imitations like the Foam Ant ready in your fly box.

• Materials
• Video Instructions
• Slideshow
• How to Fish the Foam Ant

Materials for Foam Ant

Part:	Materials:	Size/Color:
Hook:	Akita	AK503BL #14
Thread:	Veevus	Black 14/0
Body/Head:	Foam Cylinders	Black 1/8”
Hackle:	Dry Fly Hackle	Grizzly
Body 2:	Ice Dub	UV Red

Video Instructions on How to Tie a Foam Ant

Video coming soon.

Slideshow on How To Tie a Foam Ant

Step 1 – Tie In the Body

Start tying in your thread about 1 to 2x the length of the hook’s eye behind the eye. Make even thread wraps backward until your tying thread is aligned with the hook’s point. Take on Foam Cylinder and tie it in on top of the hook with a pinching loop. Use a few figure-8 wraps to ensure that it will not move when you are fishing the terrestrial imitation. Tie down the Foam Cylinder until you reach the bare hook shank. Again, a few figure-8 wraps will make a more durable fly.

Step 2 – Build Up the Thorax

Tie in one grizzly dry fly hackle feather by the end. The shiny side should be facing you. Make a dubbing noodle with the UV Red Ice Dub and build up the thorax. Make a few wraps with the dry fly hackle and tie it off before completing the dry fly with a whip finish or a few half-hitches and a drop of varnish. Trim the Foam Cylinder. The back part should be slightly shorter than the hook shank, while the front part should be about half the size of the back part.

How to Fish the Foam Ant

Using foam in your dry flies makes them unsinkable, and the foam dry flies can be used in fast-flowing waters. When nymphing with a rig, you can also use the Foam Ant as an attractor/indicator. The red thorax makes the fly visible to both you and the fish. When ants land in water, they often make small quirky moves, and you can imitate this by making small retrieves or twitches.