Like so many of the top producing chironomid patterns out there the Zucchini hails from the hotbed of stillwater fly development in the trout lake mecca of interior British Columbia. It's simple, versatile to match a lot of different bugs in different sizes and pretty durable to boot. I like that the black holographic flashabou reflects a number of colors in the light and captures that dark olive hue observed in a ripe zucchini very well. I particularly like to fish this one in late May and through June on our local lakes when we begin seeing large bomber chironomids coming off. I'll tie these as big as 8's and 10's and down to a size 14. You can tie them on a curved "scud" hook like the original such as a Daiichi 1120 or Mustad C14S or on the more straight-shanked variety like the Daiichi 1760 in the video. This is an exceptional chironomid pupa pattern to add to your collection if it's not already taking up several rows in your box.
Zucchini Chironomid Recipe:
Hook: #12 Daiichi 1760
Bead: 3/32" Pearl White Plummeting Tungsten
Thread: Black Semperfli Nano Silk
Rib: Small Red Ultra Wire
Body: Black Holographic Flashabou
Collar: 70 Denier Rusty Brown Ultra Thread
Finish: Solarez Bone Dry Ultra Thin UV Resin