Al Caucci and Bob Nastasi introduced the Comparadun style of dry fly in the early 1970 and wrote about it in their manual Hatches (and Hatches II ). Comparaduns are one of the most versatile mayfly patterns in existence representing a low-riding mayfly to near perfection.

The Compara-dun is a simple, durable design that adds only three materials to the hook, floats reasonably well even in broken water, and fools even the toughest trout. The upright fan-wing design triggers strikes from fish feeding on mayfly duns, but because the 180-degree wing also extends an equal distance to each side, Compara-duns have a "footprint" similar to mayfly spinners, which float on the water with wings splayed to the side. This makes the Compara-dun an easy-to-see and effective spinner imitation.

Sparkle Dun

Craig Mathews, who owns Blue Ribbon Flies in West Yellowstone, Montana, slightly modified the Compara-dun by replacing the hackle-fiber tails with an amber Z-lon "shuck" that represents the partially empty exoskeleton of a mayfly nymph still attached to the emerging mayfly dun. This adaptation--called the Sparkle Dun--allows you to fish three stages of the mayfly life cycle with a single fly.

Available in our store and Web site in ten different Mayfly patterns, Pro tied on premium Dai-Riki 320 dry fly hooks.