Foam back prawn
This fly is a floating version of my PET prawn fly and can be a real game changer and so much fun when estuary species, particularly bream and whiting, are feeding on the surface.
Whiting
Baitfish fly- pink over pink and / or white
My clousers have progressively mutated to being tied out of synthetic Flash Blend. This is my best mutation to date and as well as being very durable it is slightly translucent and moves well in the water making the representation of a bait fish better than the original. It also sheds water well on the pick up and back cast making it easy to cast.
Pregnant prawn – size #1/0 7 cm long
An ideal fly for targeting bottom feeders such as bream, flathead, flounder, whiting, bonefish or tropical trigger fish. Because of the lead shot it sinks quickly, swims hook point up, resisting snagging up on detritus matter or bottom structure such as shells or small stones, and as it is retrieved, has the added benefit on soft bottoms of kicking up a little sand or mud in much the same way as the natural.
Mud prawn – small 5cm to 6cm long
The mud prawn is my first choice of fly for general prospecting in estuary waters or for targeting, whiting, flathead and bream. In water of only a meter or so fish it on an intermediate line. In deeper water I prefer to fish it on a sinking line. The best retrieve is a jerky but slow retrieve leaving plenty of time between strips for he fly to settle back on the bottom. used in this way it’s a good representation of a prawn fleeing from its sandy retreat after being disturbed.
Baited breath
This is a prawn or shrimp imitation that has stood the test of time. Whilst I have seen it in all sorts of sizes and colours I have found that small flies tied in translucent shades of olives through to browns work best.
Crazy charlie
There have been many variations and adaptations. My version is based on the original tailed version and works well in estuaries on bream, whiting and flathead etc. I tie all my crazy Charlie flies much fuller with translucent materials rather than sparse with solid materials. I also tie my crazy Charlie flies longer than the hook shank and trim them down on the water if a shorter fly is needed.
PET shell nipper
This PET shell nipper is significantly different to my PET shell prawn as that is unweighted and is designed to fish hook bite down whereas this nipper has a weight under its tail and is designed to be fished on the sandy bottom with the hook bite up.
PET shell prawn
Prawns and shrimp are crustaceans, of the family Isopod, and are endemic to our Australian estuary waters. They are toward the top of the food chain for a lot of coastal species of fish including bream, flathead and whiting.