Post by yihunt on Mar 29, 2009 8:28:48 GMT -4
Sunday, March 29, 2009
By John Hayes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
John Hayes/Post-GazetteUnder the right conditions and used correctly, live minnows, such as fatheads, above, can be great trout bait.
Fish can't count. But when it comes to evaluating the energy expenditure necessary to capture food vs. the nutritional value of that food, they get the math right every time.
In natural conditions about 90 percent of a trout's diet is bugs: mayflies, caddisflies, stoneflies and other insects in adult and larval form, and terrestrial invertebrates that fall into the water. It takes less energy to lie in calm water at the edge of a current and sip passing flies, ants and beetles, or root through the gravel for nymphs, than it takes to go chasing after minnows that are darting away for their lives.
But when a trout sees or senses the erratic gyrations of a sick or injured minnie, the energy loss-gain ratio flips, and it's like cruising through the drive-through for a calorie-heavy burger and super-sized fries.
"Insects are easy prey for trout," said Tom Greene, cold water unit leader for the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. "But if a minnow is easy to get, it's a large food item and is more energy efficient than gathering many smaller food items. One minnow equals [the nutritional value of] how many mayflies? How many stoneflies? But only if it's easy to get."
That's why even though minnows are about 10 percent of a trout's diet, live minnows can make great trout bait. Fished properly according to water conditions, the act of rigging and casting a live minnow puts a wounded, vulnerable large food item within a trout's striking range.
In the Lake Erie and Ohio River drainages, emerald shiners were until recently the most popular minnows crowding the tanks at live bait shops. Most were netted in the Great Lakes and sold in wholesale bulk to live bait shops.
But in an effort to slow the migration of viral hemorrhagic septisemia (VHS) and other invasive species to inland waterways, transporting live fish from the Lake Erie watershed is now prohibited. Similar restrictions exist on other Great Lakes.
Fish and Boat Commission sources say a certification process is in place to permit commercial netting for the sale of live minnows. But as a result of the VHS restrictions, the wholesale cost of live minnows has skyrocketed and retail prices have increased as local shops purchase mostly fatheads from Midwest hatcheries.
"I know what they're trying to do [at Erie], but it's not working," said Lee Murray, owner of Lock 3 Bait and Tackle in Cheswick. "It's something that they ought to stop. It's impossible."
Anglers who seine or trap their own live minnows from local waters usually end up with emerald shiners, black-nosed dace, sculpins or young creek chubs, and maybe some fatheads taken from warmer waters.
The biggest drawback to live minnow fishing is transporting them. On the road, a minnie bucket and battery-operated or chemical aerator are prerequisite, and it's important to keep the bucket out of the sun in warm weather. Bank anglers can tote the bucket with them, acclimating the minnows to water conditions by refreshing it when they get to their favorite spot. Anglers covering a lot of stream water often carry smaller dip buckets that work fine as long as they remember to change the water frequently.
Dave Miko, head of Fish and Boat's division of fisheries management, says to count on the sturdy emerald shiner for durability and effectiveness.
"They're pretty hardy as long as you keep them cool [in the 60s] and aerated," he said. "As for size, the rule of thumb is bigger fish take bigger bait. But for the 11-inch stocked trout we're putting in the streams, any emerald shiner you pull out will be sufficient."
For live-minnow fishing, use a spinning or spin-cast reel on a slower light-action rod to reduce the amount of jerking movements during casting. Those jolts can rip a hook right out of a minnow before it hits the water. Light lines work best -- 2- to 4-pound test -- and size 8 or 10 hooks will permit minnows to swim more actively, letting the bait do the job of attracting attention.
In lakes and ponds, most minnow-fishing anglers suspend the bait under slip bobbers rigged so the bait hangs several feet off the bottom. Split shot attached several inches above the bait provide additional weight when casting and prevent minnows from surfacing, which they're apt to do particularly when a predator is lurking nearby.
There are several opposing views regarding how to rig live minnows for lake fishing.
"Some prefer hooking them through the lips," said Greene. "Some prefer a dorsal fin hookup, and some do it through the tail."
The common lip-rig is the least durable. To reduce the number of times the minnow flies off during the cast, spear it behind the bottom lip and out through a nasal opening. The tail-rig is an awkward presentation of the minnow that limits its movement. The most solid rig spears the minnow just below the dorsal fin and spine. Do it right and the bait can survive for hours. Do it wrong and you'll kill or paralyze it on the spot, and trout don't eat dead minnows.
When fishing live minnows in rivers and streams, use a bobber rig only in the slowest-moving pools. In currents, attach heavy split shot about 2 feet up the line and let the hooked minnow float above it. Cast at a three-quarter angle upstream, drifting the bait through the area you intend to fish. Reel in; cast again. It's a lot of wear and tear on the minnow. Check your bait frequently.
Perhaps the best way to fish minnows in current is to forgo the whole "live" bait philosophy. Salted minnows -- usually fatheads or emerald shiners -- are often fished with a fly rod. A barrel swivel separates the leader from the tippet to prevent twisted lines and ensure the bait moves well in the water. At the end of the tippet, tie a small overhand loop.
The minnow is rigged using a large sewing needle with part of the eye rim removed. Slip the loop onto the needle and insert through the dried minnow's mouth and out near the tail. Attach a double hook (size 8-10) to the loop and pull the shank back through the minnow's body with the gaps and barbs exposed. Weight with split shot. Fish the salted minnow like a streamer, retrieving and mending the heavy fly line to swim the bait upstream, strategically drawing near to every rock, log and overhang it passes.
Bottled minnows tend to be softer and less durable but can be fished the same way.
Greene says he catches a lot of trout with a similar rig, using a spinning rod and live minnows threaded onto double hooks.
"Basically, you're killing the minnow by threading it on," he said. "But you get the rigor mortis effect -- they stiffen. There's more movement to them than salted minnows, and they're generally more sturdy and more colorful. I've used both types and both work very well."
Greene says the most common problem associated with minnow fishing involves weight.
"I think one of the biggest mistakes anglers make when fishing minnows is not using enough weight," he said. "In general, the amount of weight you use depends on water conditions and time of year. Early in the season, when the water is high and cold, keep the minnows closer to the bottom. Later in the season when the water temperature has moderated ... [and] trout will be more willing to chase them ... fish minnows higher in the water."
John Hayes can be reached at jhayes@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1991.
First published on March 29, 2009 at 12:00 am
By John Hayes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
John Hayes/Post-GazetteUnder the right conditions and used correctly, live minnows, such as fatheads, above, can be great trout bait.
Fish can't count. But when it comes to evaluating the energy expenditure necessary to capture food vs. the nutritional value of that food, they get the math right every time.
In natural conditions about 90 percent of a trout's diet is bugs: mayflies, caddisflies, stoneflies and other insects in adult and larval form, and terrestrial invertebrates that fall into the water. It takes less energy to lie in calm water at the edge of a current and sip passing flies, ants and beetles, or root through the gravel for nymphs, than it takes to go chasing after minnows that are darting away for their lives.
But when a trout sees or senses the erratic gyrations of a sick or injured minnie, the energy loss-gain ratio flips, and it's like cruising through the drive-through for a calorie-heavy burger and super-sized fries.
"Insects are easy prey for trout," said Tom Greene, cold water unit leader for the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. "But if a minnow is easy to get, it's a large food item and is more energy efficient than gathering many smaller food items. One minnow equals [the nutritional value of] how many mayflies? How many stoneflies? But only if it's easy to get."
That's why even though minnows are about 10 percent of a trout's diet, live minnows can make great trout bait. Fished properly according to water conditions, the act of rigging and casting a live minnow puts a wounded, vulnerable large food item within a trout's striking range.
In the Lake Erie and Ohio River drainages, emerald shiners were until recently the most popular minnows crowding the tanks at live bait shops. Most were netted in the Great Lakes and sold in wholesale bulk to live bait shops.
But in an effort to slow the migration of viral hemorrhagic septisemia (VHS) and other invasive species to inland waterways, transporting live fish from the Lake Erie watershed is now prohibited. Similar restrictions exist on other Great Lakes.
Fish and Boat Commission sources say a certification process is in place to permit commercial netting for the sale of live minnows. But as a result of the VHS restrictions, the wholesale cost of live minnows has skyrocketed and retail prices have increased as local shops purchase mostly fatheads from Midwest hatcheries.
"I know what they're trying to do [at Erie], but it's not working," said Lee Murray, owner of Lock 3 Bait and Tackle in Cheswick. "It's something that they ought to stop. It's impossible."
Anglers who seine or trap their own live minnows from local waters usually end up with emerald shiners, black-nosed dace, sculpins or young creek chubs, and maybe some fatheads taken from warmer waters.
The biggest drawback to live minnow fishing is transporting them. On the road, a minnie bucket and battery-operated or chemical aerator are prerequisite, and it's important to keep the bucket out of the sun in warm weather. Bank anglers can tote the bucket with them, acclimating the minnows to water conditions by refreshing it when they get to their favorite spot. Anglers covering a lot of stream water often carry smaller dip buckets that work fine as long as they remember to change the water frequently.
Dave Miko, head of Fish and Boat's division of fisheries management, says to count on the sturdy emerald shiner for durability and effectiveness.
"They're pretty hardy as long as you keep them cool [in the 60s] and aerated," he said. "As for size, the rule of thumb is bigger fish take bigger bait. But for the 11-inch stocked trout we're putting in the streams, any emerald shiner you pull out will be sufficient."
For live-minnow fishing, use a spinning or spin-cast reel on a slower light-action rod to reduce the amount of jerking movements during casting. Those jolts can rip a hook right out of a minnow before it hits the water. Light lines work best -- 2- to 4-pound test -- and size 8 or 10 hooks will permit minnows to swim more actively, letting the bait do the job of attracting attention.
In lakes and ponds, most minnow-fishing anglers suspend the bait under slip bobbers rigged so the bait hangs several feet off the bottom. Split shot attached several inches above the bait provide additional weight when casting and prevent minnows from surfacing, which they're apt to do particularly when a predator is lurking nearby.
There are several opposing views regarding how to rig live minnows for lake fishing.
"Some prefer hooking them through the lips," said Greene. "Some prefer a dorsal fin hookup, and some do it through the tail."
The common lip-rig is the least durable. To reduce the number of times the minnow flies off during the cast, spear it behind the bottom lip and out through a nasal opening. The tail-rig is an awkward presentation of the minnow that limits its movement. The most solid rig spears the minnow just below the dorsal fin and spine. Do it right and the bait can survive for hours. Do it wrong and you'll kill or paralyze it on the spot, and trout don't eat dead minnows.
When fishing live minnows in rivers and streams, use a bobber rig only in the slowest-moving pools. In currents, attach heavy split shot about 2 feet up the line and let the hooked minnow float above it. Cast at a three-quarter angle upstream, drifting the bait through the area you intend to fish. Reel in; cast again. It's a lot of wear and tear on the minnow. Check your bait frequently.
Perhaps the best way to fish minnows in current is to forgo the whole "live" bait philosophy. Salted minnows -- usually fatheads or emerald shiners -- are often fished with a fly rod. A barrel swivel separates the leader from the tippet to prevent twisted lines and ensure the bait moves well in the water. At the end of the tippet, tie a small overhand loop.
The minnow is rigged using a large sewing needle with part of the eye rim removed. Slip the loop onto the needle and insert through the dried minnow's mouth and out near the tail. Attach a double hook (size 8-10) to the loop and pull the shank back through the minnow's body with the gaps and barbs exposed. Weight with split shot. Fish the salted minnow like a streamer, retrieving and mending the heavy fly line to swim the bait upstream, strategically drawing near to every rock, log and overhang it passes.
Bottled minnows tend to be softer and less durable but can be fished the same way.
Greene says he catches a lot of trout with a similar rig, using a spinning rod and live minnows threaded onto double hooks.
"Basically, you're killing the minnow by threading it on," he said. "But you get the rigor mortis effect -- they stiffen. There's more movement to them than salted minnows, and they're generally more sturdy and more colorful. I've used both types and both work very well."
Greene says the most common problem associated with minnow fishing involves weight.
"I think one of the biggest mistakes anglers make when fishing minnows is not using enough weight," he said. "In general, the amount of weight you use depends on water conditions and time of year. Early in the season, when the water is high and cold, keep the minnows closer to the bottom. Later in the season when the water temperature has moderated ... [and] trout will be more willing to chase them ... fish minnows higher in the water."
John Hayes can be reached at jhayes@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1991.
First published on March 29, 2009 at 12:00 am