The Creature

The Creature
Mop Flies Re-imagined

Bart Lombardo's, "Creature"
Tied by the author

Above, are examples of a fly called, “The Creature.”
It’s the brainchild of friend and fly fishing guru, Bart Lombardo, found here: Panfish On The Fly - the Creature 

What you're looking at with 'The Creature’ is essentially an embellished mop fly.

Mop Fly?

It could be you're just hearing about the mop fly. If so, one wonders if you have been under a rock over the last few years.
The mop fly has become a near cult-like thing in recent times, and its hard to imagine any fly angler not hearing of it before now.
But, if you haven't, let's suffice it to say the usual mop fly is made from one of the grub-like nibs cut from a dust mop or car washing mitt....like this...

Once affixed to a hook, these nibs are spruced up with a little dubbing or a bead... and that's pretty much it. 

Mop Fly... a real snoozer

The Improved Mop Fly

Many people claim the Mop Fly is a sure fire winner, while others shun it as gaudy and downright un-flylike.
I'm personally in the middle. I have never been taken much by the basic mop fly; they've been a dud as far as I’m concerned.
So I was a little reluctant to embrace The Creature, until I took a really close look on my lap top.

By the way, I recommend getting off your cell phone and spending more time with your PC or laptop - the things you'll see on a bigger, clearer screen are mind blowing

Well, once it was clearly seen, it hit me that The Creature takes the rather mundane mop fly to a whole new level.

Creature creator, Bart Lombardo, well, he says the pattern combines several proven fish-catching elements into one fly:

• The mop nib
• Hairy dubbing 
• Rubber legs 
• Long flowing hackle

I can hardly argue with that list.

Put them all together and its hard to imagine it would ever fail.

What Is It?
Whenever we tie flies, we normally imagine our designs represent, well... something alive. Most dry flies mimic floating mayflies, for example.

Streamers usually imitate small fish, and so on.

So, what does The Creature represent?

In my mind, it represents large aquatic nymphs and invertebrates.
It could also appear as a crayfish, I suppose.
If you tied them in light tones, you might get away with calling them baitfish imitators, but I wouldn't.

To me its a big aquatic nymph, or crayfish.
And why not?

Both nymphs and crawdads are found in my Southern lakes in great numbers.
I've seen dragonfly nymphs over 2 " long.
The fish encounter them regularly, they relish them, and they respond to other patterns that fit the same niche.
It just makes sense to see them that way.

Another good, "Creature feature,” is its size.
The mop nibs are not tiny little things - they are fat, and an inch or so long. This means the pattern is large enough, by default, that small fish tend to shy away from it.
But, chunky bluegill, shellcracker and crappie nail ‘em with a vengeance.
Again, they've seen large aquatic nymphs and recognize them as tasty morsels!

Fishing the Creature

My area lakes are full of fat dragonfly nymphs, like I've said. 

Crayfish are another star feature. The nymphs are either free swimming, or bottom dwelling, and crayfish tend to be down among the rocks. With this in mind, I suggest you fish The Creature two ways... 1. Fish them nearly weightless as a slow sinking pattern, tight around shallow cover - wood, rocks, weeds. Keep them moving with small strips and the occasional sharp snap. 2. Fish them weighted, or on a sinking line, as crawling/swimming imitations of dragonfly nymphs or crayfish, near the bottom. To weight them using an old-school trick, tie the fly onto the tippet or line with a good sized loop at the hook eye, and attach a small split shot to the bottom of the loop.

Use a slow retrieve and keep them moving like they're creeping along near the bottom.

The first time I ever tried The Creature, it was at one of my reliable bluegill spots. I cast it out, weightless, and let it land as gently as my modest skills would allow.
I had only just taken up the slack in the leader, when a fish nearly came out of the water after the thing!
I've liked them ever since.

Bass love a mega-sized mouthy morsel, too, so I also envision Creatures tied as large as I can possibly make them for these gamey fish.

The Creature doesn’t duplicate anything, but in the immortal words of Polly Rosborough, ...”it looks like something a fish would wanna eat.”
If you like to throw a fly, you might wanna give The Creature a try.

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Do you want to add the catching flies seen here to your own fly or tackle box?
Do you have questions, compliments, or suggestions?
If so, email me at...dahutist@gmail.com

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Thanks so much for reading, and...

Tight Lines,

Dave Hutton

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