Shrimp Flies

The short answer: shrimp flies out-fish crabs on cloudy days, in stained water, and any time fish are cruising instead of tailing. Weighted for depth, weedless for grass, and always a subtle strip — never a hard jerk.

Shrimp flies by species

Redfish

Best shrimp for redfish: Redfish Crack, our Peel N' Eat Shrimp, Cocktail Shrimp, and the MicroBoil in tan or black. Size 2 to 1 covers 90% of Gulf marsh work. Cast, let it settle, then a slow one-inch strip — reds hit shrimp on the fall almost every time.

Speckled trout

Smaller, lighter, and with more flash than a redfish shrimp. Size 4 to 6 in white, chartreuse, or pearl. The Bent Back pattern is deadly under lights at night and around bait pods at dawn.

Bonefish

Small, sparse, and lightly weighted. Cocktail Shrimp, Mantis Shrimp, and our Hot Legs Shrimp in size 4 to 6. Bonefish shrimp should land quiet and get worked with tiny strips and long pauses.

Snook, tarpon, jacks

Bigger shrimp on stouter hooks. Sheep Candy, Bully, and Rainy's J's Playground in size 1/0 and up. Around dock lights, mangroves, and bait schools.

Weight and depth

• Bead-chain shrimp: Skinny water, tailing fish, sight casts under 2 ft.
• XS to S dumbbell: Cruising fish in 2–4 ft. The most versatile weight.
• Medium dumbbell or lead wraps: Deep flats, current, and pushing water.
• Weedless: Non-negotiable in Louisiana marsh grass. All our marsh shrimp are tied with a mono weed guard as standard.

Color that works

Three colors cover most water: tan (default), black (low light and stained water), and pink or white (bonefish and clear water). Chartreuse gets a spot in the box for cloudy trout mornings.

Retrieve — where most people get it wrong

A real shrimp moves in short 1–2 inch pulses with long pauses, not a chuck-and-strip like a baitfish. If your line is moving continuously, you're moving the fly too much. Cast, let it sink, then tiny strips with pauses long enough to smoke a cigarette. Fish eat on the pause almost every time.

Starter shrimp box

• 3 tan shrimp, sizes 2, 4, and 6 — everyday redfish and trout
• 2 black shrimp, size 2 — low light and dirty water
• 2 white bonefish shrimp, size 4 — travel box
• 1 large snook shrimp, size 1/0 — dock lights and mangroves

Every shrimp fly on this page is tied by FINATICS or by a small-batch American tyer we personally fish. No import fillers.