A material that’s great for tying dry fly wings and parachute posts, Hareline’s Calf Hair provides excellent buoyancy and is easy to handle. With generally straight fibers, this is a material that you can turn to for a range of applications, whether it be tailing material or a down wing on a grasshopper pattern. Coming in a bold white color, Calf Body Hair also offers great visibility in rough waters or lowlight conditions. From attractor patterns like a Trude to coming up with something of your own, Calf Body Hair is a natural material that you can rely on.

Uses

While Calf Body Hair is a versatile material, it’s most commonly used to make wings on Wulff-style dry flies and parachute posts. However, its capabilities extend beyond those two options and this material can be used for tails on dry flies as well as down wings on flies like stoneflies, caddisflies, grasshoppers, and even emergers.

Comparisons

Calf Body Hair is regularly compared to Calf Tail. While these are both natural materials and known for their bright white color, Calf Tail fibers are often a bit longer and tend to have a bit more crinkle to them. This makes it a great choice for the times whenever you’re tying larger flies or are looking to tie a wing that appears to be more full; on the other hand, the more straight characteristics of the Calf Body Hair are ideal for slimmer wing profiles.

Example Flies

Calf Body Hair has been around for years and is most commonly used in the ever-classic Royal Wulff Dry Fly.