Hen Matuka
Volume 3, Long Flies, in our series, Fly Fishing, is reaching its final writing destination. Here’s a short excerpt from Long Flies on a design I call the Hen Matuka, It harkens back to the original fly tied with the feathers of the matuku bittern.
The Matuka, a New Zealand imitation, solves the wing/hook-bend tangling problem in a very unique way. The feather wing is secured to the top of the hook with a thread, tinsel, or wire rib, wound through the fibers of the feather from the tail to the head of the fly. Originally, the fly was tied with feathers from a bittern native to New Zealand, and called the “matuku.” This bird is on the protected list, now, so its feathers are no longer used. But just as well. There’s nothing like a serious search for substitute materials to get a fly tyer off dead center. Such experimentation often yields results that exceed the design with the original materials.
The development of genetic hackle and the search for its many variants has lead to the development of hen saddles of Coq de Leon, Chickabou, Brahama, and others that make fabulous mataku-feather substitutes. The body of the Hen Matuka is made with palmered feathers, the wing is two feathers faced cup side inward (or outward for even more action) and ribbed to the body, and the collar is a made from one feather wound as a hackle at the head. These flies have incredible action and form in the water.
Attach the thread and leave a long tag end for a rib. Tie in a hen saddle feather and spin it in a thread loop. Palmer the feather over the rear half of the hook shank. The loop serves two purposes: (1) it strenghtens the feathers, and (2) it gives you something to hang onto while palmering the feather.
Add a second hen saddle feather to finish the body.
Use two hen saddle feathers for the wing. These can be cup faces inward, as shown, or for more action, cup faces outward. Use the tag end of the thread to secure the winging feathers to the top of the hook. a la the original Matuka.
Wind another feather at the head for the hackle. These flies have great color and intense action in the water.