Thread Red (butt) and black (body) 18/0 Semperfli Spyder thread (both colors)
Materials
Starling neck feather Iridescent black tip (1 (hackle))
Cobbler's wax (Semperfli) Black ostrich herl (touch for both threads)
How to tie it
Turn the small hook sideways in the vise jaws to make the rear of the shank easy to reach.
Wax the end of the 18/0 red thread with cobbler's wax and start it near the rear; wrap a small band of touching turns down to the bend and back, this is the red butt, then whip finish and trim.
Start the waxed 18/0 black thread just ahead of the butt, give it a little spin to flatten, and wrap forward to the head area; turn the hook upright.
Pick a starling neck feather (from toward the base of the neck) whose tip section is truly black; fold it around the hook to gauge that the barbs will sweep back about to the butt, and snip off the very tip.
Wax the base of the stem and tie the feather in by its base, wet-fly style, at the head, leaving a touch of bare stem exposed to orient it; trim the stem.
Grip the tip with hackle pliers and wind just one to one-and-a-half gentle turns. Starling is delicate and a spider only has eight legs, so keep it sparse.
Tie off, pull the leftover stem free, sweep the fibers back, whip finish, and trim.