Do you love big bluegill?
I preference myself to liking Wax Worms I think because that is the most popular at the bait stores so I'm accustomed to using them. I'm sure they all work but the 2 I use the most are Wax Worms and mousies. I found them to be equal as far as catching fish.
Preference for me lean to Mousies and Spikes(maggots)on the real small baits and waxies on the slightly larger ice jigs.Mealworms too if available on larger jigs .
Where I fish in NENJ/SENY the baits that are available are ;Wax Worms,Mealworms and Spikes(maggots ). Thinking early ice bigger baits and smaller as the season progresses I'm inclined to want to use Mealworms and waxworms on jigs early season and Mousies and Spikes as the season progresses. What do you guys think of that procedure? I hope to learn and archive more, species bait preference according to conditions, this year. This is all relative to the species I'm targeting and my home area lakes include : Bluegill Pseed, Hybrid BG/PS,Large mouth Bass ,Yellow and White Perch ,Crappie ,Walleye ,Bullheads,Trout and Pickerel.
I use waxworms a lot in the summer, as they are readily available. But I greatly prefer maggots (spikes). I believe that they are harder for the fish to get off the hook, and they tend to stay alive longer than waxworms. I never use just one per jig however.....I like a wriggling Medusa's head of 2-3 spikes together.
Medusa head,
lol
Tony -are you talkin Bluegills and Hybrid BG/GSF only?
Glad you joined!
Yeah John, BG are pretty much all I fish for these days. I have taken other species using the same methods (single jig and multiple spikes), but it was usually by accident. Channel catfish are the most common non-targeted species I catch, but I believe that Jacob Hill posted a photo a couple days ago of a very nice LMB he took on an ice jig tipped with a single waxworm.
Your right on that one Tony the more you can get on that little hook the better the attractant.
Nothing wrong with catching Gills on Perch eyes on a small spoon like a kastmaster or swedish pimple .Shallow ,aggressive 8" or bigger Gills have liked Rattlin Flyer spoons tipped with Perch eyes .If I'm keeping YPerch I always give there eyes a try when the bite is a good one I've gotten Perch,Crappie and decent Gills that way.Plus the bait is free!
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