When cicadas are singing — annual dog-day cicadas every summer, periodical broods in their unforgettable years — trout and smallmouth alike lose all caution. A black foam body with an orange underside, splayed rubber legs, and a dark wing: cast it hard against the bank and hang on.
1. Thread base — Attach black thread behind the eye and build a base to the bend.
2. Bottom foam — Tie in a strip of orange foam at the bend and again at the front — the pale underside real cicadas show.
3. Top foam — Tie in a black foam strip at the bend. Leave it rearward for now.
4. Underbody — Dub a black underbody between the tie-down points.
5. Body — Pull the black foam over the top and tie down at the front, leaving a stub head over the eye. Segment once at the midpoint with thread wraps.
6. Wing — Tie in a small bunch of black deer hair (or elk) over the body, tips to the bend.
7. Legs — Tie in one rubber leg per side at the midpoint and one per side at the front, splayed.
8. Indicator — A tuft of poly yarn on top for visibility. Whip finish under the foam head and cement.
