Caddis Pupa

Caddis Pupa

The Caddis Pupa is one of the most important subsurface patterns you can fish during a caddis hatch. When caddis begin their ascent from the riverbed to the surface, trout key in on the vulnerable, swimming pupa stage — often ignoring adult dry flies entirely. This pattern imitates that critical moment, with a dubbed body that captures the plump, segmented profile of an emerging caddis and a soft hackle collar that breathes and pulses in the current, mimicking the struggling legs and wing pads of an ascending insect.

Pattern Details

• Style: Soft hackle / caddis pupa emerger
• Body: Dubbed body — plump, segmented profile imitating an emerging caddis pupa
• Collar: Soft hackle — breathes and pulses in the current, imitating legs and wing pads
• Best water: Rivers, tailwaters, and freestone streams — especially effective during caddis hatches in runs and riffles
• Target species: Trout
• Techniques: Swung across and downstream on the hang, dead-drifted through the water column, or fished as a dropper behind a dry fly or indicator
• Sizes available: 14, 16

When trout are locked onto emerging caddis and ignoring the surface, the Caddis Pupa is the pattern to reach for — a precise, lifelike imitation that intercepts fish in the most productive part of the water column.