Dragonfly
Also called Dragonfly nymph
A dragonfly is a large predatory insect. Trout and bass eat the underwater nymph stage, and bass sometimes take the adults.
- Group
- Aquatic insects
- Category
- Entomology & forage
- Level
- Intermediate
- Water
- Freshwater
Last updated
What Dragonfly means
Dragonflies start life underwater as nymphs, then crawl out to emerge into the flying stage. The nymphs vary in body shape by family, and they hunt other insects, tadpoles, and small fish.
Dragonfly nymph imitations are often fished on sinking lines and worked over and through weeds and debris in lakes and ponds.
Dragonflies are often discussed alongside damselflies. Damselfly nymphs tend to be slimmer and more delicate, and the fishing is often more about steady movement through weed beds than short, powerful darts.
Why it matters on the water
Dragonfly nymphs give you a reason to fish bigger food in places people skip, the weedy edges, the shady bank line, the inside corners, and the shallow flats next to deeper water. Those areas hold cruising fish that are not keyed on tiny bugs.
The retrieve matters more than a dead drift here. Short strips with pauses, then another burst, matches how dragonfly nymphs move and triggers eats from fish that ignore a smooth, constant swim.
Read next
- DamselflyA damselfly is an odonate insect whose juvenile stage lives in water and is a common food source for trout, bass, and panfish, especially in lakes and slow water.
- Dead driftA dead drift is a drift where the fly moves at the same speed and direction as the current, with no pull from the fly line.
- NymphA nymph is a subsurface fly meant to imitate an aquatic insect in its immature stage, or a small food item drifting in the current. Nymphs are fished with or without weight, an indicator, or tight-line methods.
- StreamerA streamer is a fly meant to be moved to imitate a baitfish, leech, sculpin, or crayfish. It is often fished with strips, swings, or a steady retrieve, but it can also be dead-drifted.