Artificial fly is an angling term closely associate with the sport of fly fishing although artificial flies maybe used in other forms of angling. In general, artificial flies are the bait which fly fishers present to their target species of fish while fly fishing. Artificial flies are constructed by the practice of fly tying. Artificial flies may be constructed to represent all manner of potential freshwater and saltwater fish prey to include aquatic and [[Terrestrial animal |terrestrial]] insects, crustaceans, worms, baitfish, vegetation, flesh, spawn, small reptiles, amphibians, mammals and birds, etc. Artificial flies were originally constructed from various furs, feathers, threads and hooks. Today there are literally dozens of different types of natural and synthetic materials used to construct artificial flies. In the early years of fly fishing through the mid-20th Century, effective artificial fly patterns were said to be killing flies because of their ability to put fish in the creel for the fly fisher. By the mid-19th Century, there were thousands of artificial fly patterns. Today, the number of distinct patterns is probably incalculable. The term Fly lure is a British term synonymous with Artificial fly.