Tying The LH Ark Purple RS2 26Jan22

We've found the spring mayflies on the Arkansas River to have a purple cast. The winterish-spring ones are small like #22 but get larger into Mar-Apr. A good imitation is a standard grey RS2, with or without a mercury glass bead. Even more perfected as to color are the tie here today, the Lavender Head Ark Purple RS2, with or without the glass bead, or my Purple May Reign. Purple is also advantaged in that it is less affected as to its apparent color by it's depth from the surface ~ longer wavelength colored light (like the color we'd see when watching a bug move up or down in the water column) gets absorbed first so red goes quickly and blues stay blue longer. Anyway... you know I like blue and purples on many of my flies. Here's the finished fly and recipe:

• Hook: #22 TMC 101
  
• Bead: Mill Hill petite lavender glass bead
• Thread: UTC 70 purple
• Tail: 8-10 black, purple or grey hen neck feather fibers
  
• Body: Hareline purple dubbin
  
• Thorax: Hareline purple dubbin
• Wing: Madeira Glamour Thread prism white small (tear into 2 or 3 if you have large); alternatives are white Antron or Z-Lon
  

Assemble the materials and tie the fly...

Place bead on hook and bind on thread.

Select 8 hen feather fibers and wrap in and back to bend for a tail.
Make last wrap under fibers to lift them up

Trim forward part of tail feathers close.
Spin on a thin noodle of dubbing.
Wrap forward building slight taper.

Tie in wing thread then add dubbing for thorax and wrap forward.

Whip finish for a finished LH Ark Purple RS2.