Rising to a lure for anglers

Press, 9 July 1983, Page 18

Rising to a lure for anglers

Trout Stream Insects of New Zealand: How to Imitate and Use Them. By Norman Marsh. Millwood Press, Wellington, 1983. 224 pp. Illustrations. $59.95. (Reviewed by Gordon Williams, late Professor of Entomology at Lincoln College, who died suddenly in June.) Entomologists need not be anglers, though obviously an unknown portion are; but anglers (especially those purists known as fly fishermen) should try to be entomologists — if only amateur entomologists — because one could say, with some degree of justification, that angling is nothing more than applied entomology. After all, the only rational reason for an angler to build up a collection of artificial flies — whether he makes them or buys them, and most with outlandish names — is to try to trick the fish into confusing the artificial for the real.

I must confess now, for it may otherwise become evident fairly soon, that I am certainly no angler, so in reviewing this book I have made use of the cunning and experience gained by some of my angling friends. They tell me that apart from catching their fish, one of the delights of the dedicated high class angler is to “match the hatch.” That means to take out from one’s collection the fly most

resembling the insect hatching above the lake or river at the moment the trout is feeding on it. I suppose if you have sufficient flies in your, collection or know enough simple entomology, you could go prepared for the time of year with ready-made artificial flies. Much more impressive is the angler who has a stock of fly-making material and from it can “match the hatch” by making the fly of the required kind on the spot. It is surprising what a peculiar collection of bits and pieces, especially feathers, that fishermen can collect. Feathers of fully-protected species seem to hold an almost morbid attraction and I was not pleased to see feathers of the partially-protected kea recommended, though the author does have the grace to add “or substitute.” Of course, the practical scientist will say that angling is rather like cooking or casting spells — a great deal of faith, tradition and experience being

required with no successful result assured. It is impossible to scientifically test the faith that anglers have in their favourite flies, since every angling occasion is unique and to test successfully most theories you have to be able to repeat your experiment exactly so as to see if you get the same results. Obviously this is not possible when you are fishing. This is a good book as far as its text

and photographs are concerned and Norman Marsh, its author, is not only a skilled angler, but is a member of both the Entomological and Limnological Societies, the latter being concerned with the study of lakes and streams. About 40 per cent of the 224 pages is concerned with the entomology of insects relevant to trout streams in this country, about half the book is on how to make flies and their history, and it ends with some 30 pages of pleasant reminiscences of days spent fishing in a small mountain stream in a part of New Zealand readers can identify for themselves. Things I did not like about the book include the heavily-sized paper, the very broad margins, often filled with unessential and undistinguished drawings, the binding (which was coming apart in my copy, but that might have been an accident), and the price. When I told an angling friend what the price of the book was his unprintable reply showed indeed that he was a coarse angler. By doing away with the unessential drawings and the margins, the book could have been both smaller and cheaper without being any less attractive. Still, my two consultants were determined that if they did not buy the book themselves, they would angle for a copy for their birthday or next Christmas.