What bait should you be using?

There are many Different types of Bait.

Live bait:
worms
Shrimp
Glass minnows
Sand fleas
Crabs
Pin fish
Mullet
Squid
all of this bait works well in different situations

If your going fishing for fun in any of SW Florida’s bays or rivers I can almost guarantee Shrimp will catch you some fish its great because many types of fish like to feed on it small mullet and glass minnows work well also If your going out for certain fish then certain bait will work but sometimes its hard to determine what the fish are feeding on, If your going after a school fish like mackerel, Bluefish, Jack or some pompano, normally its easy to tell if you can find a school feeding.

If your after fish that don’t commonly school like Redfish, Snook, Trout, ect then you have to get to the area you want to fish in and do a little bait finding..

For example if I am after Snook I no they normally feed in holes up under mangroves and on tree lines, normally I would be working a long bank so when I start I would try and see what type of bait fish are up under the trees against the shore probably finger mullet and glass minnows ( this is when a cast net comes in very handy) having a veriaty of bait on with you can work out well.

Cut Bait
Ladyfish
pinfish
lizard fish

Cut bait is normally made from any type of fish or eels you cut the bait in to squares for still fishing or strips for trolling leave the skin on for a better grab for the hook.

Normally if your using cut bait your fishing for something big. wherever im fishing I try to catch a couple small fish just to see what’s around my general rule for cut bait is the bloodier the fish the better it will work, normally when im using cut bait im fishing for shark so blood will help a lot. I have also caught grouper and snapper on cut bait. Im sure there are other times to use certain cut bait, but like I said on the first page I don’t consider myself a pro I do a lot of fishing in the bays and rivers, I don’t get a chance to do much offshore fishing.

Artificial bait, lures, and spoons

Plugs
Spoons
Crank bait like worms, tails, frogs, crabs

These all will work in one place or another regardless of what anyone tells you.

Crank bait is good in all kinds of water to imitate all kinds of live bait and is very compact for storage
Spoons let off a nice flashing light to fish the same way most bait fish do when there swimming
Plugs look just like bait fish and will act however u want them to (like a hurt fish)
Top water plugs that float also very good in shallow or calm water to look like a bait fish hurt of feeding

The only downside to “fake” bait it can be pricey and there is always something new coming out that guarantees to catch a million fish so please review things before yo buy them and always ask around I can never hurt to find out what other people are fishing with..


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