The Patches D's Stickleback isn't actually a saltwater fly. But when you tie it, you'll see right away that it's got some great potential in the brine.
Originally, this pattern was developed by Canadian fly tier Brent McLeod and named after the Powell River guide who swore by it. I first learned about the Stickleback from the pages of The Canadian Fly Fisher a couple of months ago and have been fishing it pretty heavily with good success. Originally designed as an "intruder-style" fly for steelhead, it can be adapted by changing the size and color, allowing you to mimic a host of different baitfish from your home waters. This versatile pattern can be a mullet, a whitebait, a glass minnow or mummichog, based on how you choose to tie it. Patches D's Stickleback is a hybrid of a number of different flies, drawing a little bit from old saltwater standards like Lefty's Deceiver and freshwater favorites like the Matuka. The following is the original version of the fly, a bright blue pattern designed to alert fish to a possible predator trying to eat their eggs.
The only downfall of this pattern is that with the grizzly hackle wing, it's not the most durable fly, and it WILL NOT survive sustained assaults from aggressive species like jacks or ladyfish. The Stickleback will draw its fair share of tarpon and snook, who will behave like distant relatives overstaying their welcome at a holiday buffet.
Materials
Hook: Mustad 34007, stainless steel, ranging from No. 4 to 3/0 depending on what you're targeting.
Thread: Tier's choice. I prefer monofilament since it allows the formation of a translucent head.
Body: Silver ice chenille.
Rib: Several strands of fine silver or pearlescent flash to match the body.
Wing: Two blue grizzly neck hackles tied Matuka-style approximately three times the length of the hook shank.
Flash: Several strands of pearlescent Flashabou or similar material.
Overwing: Blue marabou just long enough to reach the hook bend.
Belly: White marabou slightly shorter than the overwing.
Throat: A few small strands of red marabou or Krystal Flash.
Tying Instructions
| Step 1: Tie in the rib material parallel to the shank, hanging off the back of the hook like a tail. Tie in the ice chenille and then palmer forward toward the hook eye, leaving enough space to tie in other materials, and finish with a neat bullet head (approximately ¼ inch). |
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| Step 2: Take two grizzly hackles and place them together in a concave fashion. With the tips of the hackles lined up, strip the hackle from the underside of each feather. The stripped area should be the same length as the hook shank, allowing the hackles to lie perfectly flush on the ice chenille to accommodate the area of the body that they'll be tied on. |
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| Step 3: Using the rib attached the the hook in Step 1, hold the two hackles together and lay the stripped sides along the hook shank so that the unstripped fibers point vertically from the hook shank. Gradually weave the rib forward, tying the hackles to the top of the hook with a series of clockwise wraps around the shank. For each wrap of the rib, use a bodkin to free any trapped hackle barbells. This will give the finished fly its "stickleback" or Matuka appearance. Tie in Flashabou or Krystal Flash. |
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| Step 4: Take a blue marabou feather and clump one side together with your thumb and forefinger, forming the bunch that will make the overwing. Trim at an angle from the stem, allowing you to tie them to the hook just in front of the body with a tapered head. Repeat the process for the belly with the white marabou. Tie in a few short strands of red marabou or red Krystal Flash to mimic gills. Taper the head and whip finish. |
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| Step 5: Add prismatic eyes to the head, add coloration or glitter if desired, then coat with epoxy and rotate till set, or add Tuffleye, distribute with a bodkin and set with blue light. |
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