When to use it
- During an established local Hendrickson window.
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Reviewed representative comparison← Fly Box
Pattern family · guide 47
Hendrickson Patterns
An eastern mayfly family spanning nymphs, emergers, duns, soft hackles, Sparkle Duns, and spinners.
- Size range
- Often #12–16
- Colors reviewed
- pink-tan, gray, brown, rust spinner
- Imitates
- Hendrickson mayfly stages
Hendrickson is a hatch name. Nymphs and emergers, upright or low-riding duns, and rusty spent spinners are different fly jobs.
Technical illustration
Representative forms
Hendrickson Patterns stage map
A family-level comparison of Hendrickson nymph, Hendrickson emerger or dun, Hendrickson spinner; no single drawing represents the whole family.
- View
- stage comparison map
- Color shown
- pink-tan, gray, brown, and rust
- Look for
- dark nymph; pink-tan emerger; upright or low dun; rust spinner
On the water
Narrow the family.
The river, depth, insects, and fish behavior still decide the final presentation. These are reviewed starting points—not a claim about what is happening today.
How to fish it
- Use nymphs or emergers before rises, duns during emergence, and spinners during the fall.
Mistakes to avoid
- Calling any pink dry an exact Hendrickson pattern.
- Ignoring the spent-spinner stage.
Variant control
Small changes matter.
This stage comparison keeps materially different forms labeled. It is a family guide, not a claim that one fly represents every stage or local species.
Representative stage forms
Hendrickson is a hatch name. Nymphs and emergers, upright or low-riding duns, and rusty spent spinners are different fly jobs.- Colors shown
- pink-tan, gray, brown, rust spinner
- Weighting
- Weight and buoyancy depend on the life stage and exact named pattern.
Review trail
Sources, rights, and limits.
Pattern facts were reviewed on 2026-07-12. Every image has its own rights record; photographed hand-tied flies may still vary slightly in proportion.