As spring slowly takes hold in the Colorado high country, we’ve been tying some of our favorite caddis patterns. Whether you’re fishing the famed Mother’s Day Caddis hatch on the Arkansas River, or anywhere else around the state, caddis become an important food source for trout this time of year.
The Caddis Life Cycle
The life cycle of a caddis includes four distinct stages, resulting in a complete metamorphosis. Those four stages include egg, larva, pupa and adult.
Caddis eggs hatch into larva and depending on the species of caddis, they might spend a year in the larva stage, which will be the majority of their life. Like a small grub or worm in appearance, some species of caddis larva build cases around themselves, using small rocks, pieces of vegetation, or other aquatic substrate. Other types of caddis are free-living, attaching themselves to rocks along the bottom.
Eventually, all caddis larva enter the pupa stage, when they close their cases or spin a cocoon around themselves. Once they are fully developed, the adult caddis break free and either swim to the surface or crawl to shore, where they quickly dry and fly to bushes and trees near the water.
Finally, adult caddis mate and the females return to the water to lay their eggs. Some species of caddis dab their eggs along the surface, while others actually dive under the water.
In their larva, pupa and adult stages, caddis represent an important food source for trout. Since the larva can live in the water for a year or more, caddis larva patterns can be fished year-round. But as soon as caddis begin actively hatching, fly patterns that imitate any of these three stages can be effective.
Our Top 5 Fly Tying Videos
As you load up your fly boxes for spring fishing, check out these fly tying videos that feature a handful of our favorite caddis patterns. Materials lists included with each video below:
Garcia’s Mother’s Day Caddis
Elk Hair Caddis
Graphic Caddis
Silvey’s Tungsten Caddis Pupa
Buckskin
Contact Us With Questions
Whether you’re at your fly tying desk or out on the water, please let us know if you have questions or need help getting started. Visit us at the fly shop in Littleton with all of your fly tying or fly fishing questions. Or, you can give us a call at 303-794-1104.