Jungle Cock Feathers

Jungle Cock neck feathers became the vogue as eyes on full dressed salmon flies during the 1800's. They are still in demand as dressing for both salmon and steelhead flies. The Indian Grey Jungle Fowl (Gallus Sonneratti) Originates from Central India. The wild birds were nearly harvested to extinction and became protected by international law around 1970. At that point they became very rare as fly tying material and the price escalated. They have been bred domestically in England since 1862, but it was not until 1978 that the commercial flocks, bred by Ron Taylor of Worcestershire began supplying the bright fluorescent neck feathers from the cock birds, which are so much sought after by fly tiers world-wide. Nervous and hard to raise, these birds still command a high price. Each cape will tie hundreds of flies and a full cape is the way to buy jungle cock eyes if you can afford it.