By Nick Simonson

It’s deer season, and that means along with time on the stand, tenderloins on the grill and racks on the wall, as a result of your hunt you can also get more great materials on your fly desk to work with.  Saving a sampling of deer hide from your quarry is a great way to stock up for the tying season to make some high floating flies thanks to the hair’s hollow nature and natural buoyancy. Among those patterns is a simple deer hair beetle that has become a summer favorite for bluegills.

Materials
Hook: Dry 10-14
Thread: 6/0
Body: Peacock Herl
Shell & Legs: Deer Hair 

CLICK HERE FOR STEP-BY-STEP TUTORIAL

Start your thread on the fly by covering the shank from just behind the hook eye to the bend to help create a stable base for the hair that you’ll be tying in (1).  Next, tie in a clump of stacked deer hair by the tips, so that it stays on the top half of the hook shank, leaving an inch or so hanging from the back to fold forward (2).

Tie in two strands of peacock herl and advance your thread toward the front of the hook and wrap the herl forward evenly, tying off and trimming the excess behind the hook eye, leaving some room to finish the fly (3).  From there fold the clump of deer hair forward forming the shell back of our beetle and tie it off and trim before forming a small thread head and whip finishing (4).

To finish the fly requires a bit of precision. Use the tips of a fine scissors or the point of an X-acto knife to cut the back ends of three of the deer hairs nearest to you on both sides of the fly that are part of the shell back (5).  The hairs will pop out from the body and will form the legs on this particular beetle fly; give them a tap with your index finger to add a bit of a crinkle and the pattern is complete (6)!

Whether celebrating your deer harvest with a natural colored pattern on a patch of fur you saved, or experimenting with a variety of hues in a grab bag of deer hair from your favorite material provider, this high floating beetle is a fun add to any terrestrial selection or bluegill box which will remind you of deer season no matter the time of year.

Simonson is the lead writer and editor of Dakota Edge Outdoors.

Featured Photo: The deer hair beetle is a high floating terrestrial option with a fun way of forming the fly’s legs that differs from similar patterns. Simonson Photo.