The Tennessee Bee is a simple, buoyant dry fly pattern with a strong regional heritage. Tied here by Matt O’Neal of Savage Flies, this pattern first appeared in Dick Stewart and Farrow Allen’s Flies for Trout and was originally created by Brad Weeks as a tribute to the yellow jacket wasp common in the southeastern U.S.
While it was designed as a regional favorite, the Tennessee Bee can produce strikes anywhere trout are found, especially in late summer when terrestrials like bees, wasps, and hornets are more active. It’s a high-floating fly that stands out on the water with bold yellow-and-black segmentation and clean silhouette.
This is a great pattern to have in your box when you want something just a little different from the usual ants and beetles. Fish it tight to grassy banks, under overhanging limbs, or plop it along foam lines where trout are keyed in on surface movement.
Materials
- Hook: #10-14 dry fly
- Thread: Black
- Rib: Black floss
- Body: Yellow synthetic dubbing
- Wing: Elk hair
- Hackle: Brown dry fly
