Antelope hide strip (tail) Natural, colored black with a marker (One pre-cut strip)
Two-tone foam, 2mm (shellback) Black/white/black two tone foam mm (Two strips)
Ice chenille (body) Black estaz (One strand)
Rubber legs Black ostrich herl (Four strips, each knotted twice)
How to tie it
Mount a stout saltwater hook (Mustad 34011) and cover the shank with black 3/0 thread.
Tie in a strip of antelope hide at the rear as the tail, binding it forward along the shank to set the length. Antelope is soft enough to cut cleanly with ordinary tying scissors and has enough fiber in it to look like a real rodent tail.
Tie in two strips of two-tone black/white/black 2mm foam on top, running rearward, leaving the butt ends long at the front. The foam adds flotation and the white stripe makes the fly visible in low light.
Tie in the black ice chenille at the rear.
Make four legs from black rubber strips: tie two knots in each, one for a knee and one for an ankle, then nick a tiny piece out of the end of each to form toes.
Tie the four legs in along the sides of the shank, two per side.
Twist the ice chenille to tighten it, then wrap it forward, weaving through the legs; if the wraps creep too far forward, shove the material back rather than trimming it.
Pull the two foam strips forward over the body one at a time and tie each down at the front.
Whip finish, snip the thread, then trim the foam butt ends down and cut them at a slight angle so they kick up in front of the head. This gives the fly a Bomber-style wake.
Color the antelope tail (and any white showing) black with a marker as the last step, so the ink does not bleed onto the foam while you are tying.