Craig describes a bream fly that fits with their feeding behaviour.

Approximately 30 years ago, my mate Garry and I were fishing Wagonga Inlet, Narooma for bream. Pulling our boat into a dock after one early morning session, we noticed a better than average bream sitting next to one of the dock pylons. Channelling my inner youth, I handlined a fly down to the bream and dangled it in front of the fish. Initially nothing happened, then in a split second the bream’s gills flared, and it inhaled the fly. This was to be the most insightful moment of my bream flyfishing to that point. What was so significant was, the bream didn’t bite the fly, rather it inhaled the fly. This observation has significantly informed how I fish for bream, and the flies I use.

Firstly, how do I flyfish for bream? Unlike trout, which I believe generally prefer a steadier retrieve, bream, because they often inhale the fly, require lots of pauses. This creates small amounts of slack line which enable the bream to successfully suck the fly in. Or, putting it differently, when fishing for bream, only move the fly so you can stop it. Many takes occur when the fly is stationary, not whilst moving – a crucial point. That hookup on the strip following a pause is not a fluke!

Therefore, bream flies should be made from mobile materials which will collapse as the fly is inhaled, again allowing for better hookups. This observation caused me to develop the Polar Fibre Minnow. It’s basically a Clouser Minnow tied with Polar Fibre rather than the stiffer, traditional bucktail. As well as looking good in the water, the extremely mobile Polar Fibre allows the fly to collapse as it is inhaled.

The Polar Fibre Minnow has become my favourite bream fly, and it is also very versatile. Other species I have caught on this fly include estuary perch, flathead, Australian salmon, silver trevally, saratoga, barramundi, and even trout!

Materials

Hook – Size 6 long shank saltwater hook will do, although Ahrex make an excellent size 4 jig hook which I have started using.

Dumbbell eyes – Small brass

Thread –  6/0 Fluoro pink

Tail – Grey Polar Fibre (or craft fur)

Body – Green/pearl Sparkleflash

Wing – Olive Polar Fibre (or craft fur)

Tying instructions

Overall, I’ve found the Polar Fibre Minnow to be a very versatile fly, and it has caught me many bream (and other saltwater species) all around the country.

1. Use the jaws of your vice to de-barb the hook. Bream have very hard mouths, so a de-barbed hook gets much better penetration.
2. Lash in the dumbbell eyes to the top of the hook, allowing enough room behind the eye to tie in the wing.
3. Cut off a generous amount of grey Polar Fibre.
4. Stroke out the short fluff, and tie in from behind the eyes back to the bend of the hook.
5. Take approximately 8 strands of the Sparkleflash, and tie the full length of the hook back to the bend of the hook.
6. Then wind forward to beyond the eyes, creating the body of the fly. Don’t trim off the excess Sparkle flash.
7. Paint the body with clear Hard as Nails or Head Cement and leave to dry.
8. Turn the hook upside down in the vice and tie back the strands of Sparkle flash, then trim them to two-thirds of the length of the fly.
9. Tie in a clump of olive Polar Fibre, again removing the short fluff.
10. Finally, whip finish and paint the head with clear Hard as Nails or Head Cement.