Red Quill
The Red Quill is the companion pattern to the Hendrickson, imitating the male of the same Ephemerella species. The stripped reddish-brown hackle stem body catches reflected light in a way dubbing cannot, giving it uncanny realism. It shines on cold early-season streams in the East when Hendrickson hatches are underway and fish are highly selective to the smaller, reddish males.
- Type
- dry fly (Mayfly)
- Hook sizes
- #12–16
- Target species
- trout
- Difficulty
- advanced
- Best seasons
- spring
Materials
- hook: Dry fly hook #12–16
- thread: Red or rust 8/0
- tail: Blue dun hackle fibers
- body: Stripped reddish-brown rooster hackle stem, soaked to soften
- wing: Wood duck lemon flank fibers, upright and divided
- hackle: Blue dun rooster hackle
Tying steps
- Mount a size 12–16 dry fly hook; start red or rust thread at the bend.
- Select a reddish-brown rooster hackle feather; strip the barbules from both sides and soak in water to soften.
- Tie in the stripped stem at the bend; wind it in tight, even touching spirals forward to the 2/3 mark to form the body.
- Tie in woodduck flank fibers upright as divided wings; figure-eight to separate.
- Tie in blue dun tail fibers and a blue dun rooster hackle.
- Wind hackle 4–5 turns; tie off and build a small head.
- Whip finish and lacquer; the segmented quill body is fragile — reinforce with a thin UV resin coat.
- Inspect the quill body from the side — the dark and light edges of each quill fiber should spiral evenly, producing clear visible segmentation along the entire shank.