Buzzer patterns, sometimes called midge pupae, first appeared in the early part of the 20th Century. There are huge variations in colour, size and type but I shall content myself with some of those that are currently in use in the UK. One important point to remember is that the vast majority of fly fishing in UK is done on still waters as all the river banks are privately owned and so river fishing is often syndicated and usually expensive.
The modern buzzers were developed in the 1960’s primarily on the Reservoirs in England, especially Rutland, which covers some 3300 acres. The idea of covering the thread with a layer of epoxy is said to have originated here although now the use of superglue and nail varnish is probably more common. Generally the body is simply thread ribbed with fine wire or, in some versions, fine Lurex is used. The body can be plain or have a tag or cheeks with or without white breathers. The variations are endless, particularly when you add in the size and shape of the hook and whether you want one of fine wire or a heavy pattern to sink faster. Flexifloss or Spanflex, in either single colours or paired, instead of thread for the body, is another option and with the advent of holographic tinsel an even wider range of possibilities has opened up.
These “epoxy” versions often referred to as Skinny Buzzers are my personal favourite but I use superglue and Sally Hansen Hard as Nails to cover the thread. I omit the white breathers but do use an orange tag, particularly on the black ones. There are several ways that the orange cheeks can be added. Orange floss can be used, or the cheeks can simply be painted on using fluorescent fabric paint. I tend to use a combination of the two; orange floss coated with the fluorescent paint. All of these are usually fished with a very slow retrieve and I generally start with a size 12.
A version I call the Humpy Buzzer came to my attention at a Fly show in Leicester a couple of years ago. This very simple pattern uses Antron as the body and orange floss at the head. I don’t know the name of the originator but I use it in Black and Olive.
The other version I use appeared in a Magazine article a few years ago and was designed by Steve Parton. This consists of marabou tied in by the tip at the bend of the hook, together with some thin clear polythene. The marabou is wrapped round the shank about two thirds of the way up and then ribbed with the polythene. A thorax of seal’s fur is added and the marabou pulled forward to the eye to form the wing case. There are newer versions where Flexi-floss or Spanflex has replaced the polythene, but I prefer the look of the original. This was designed for fishing deep and quite large (size 10) heavy wire hooks were used. This can be tied in a variety of colours (olive, claret and brown) as well as the usual black.
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