Cockchafer is a popular bait for fishing. But to put it on a hook, you need to have an insect in stock. Where and how to catch the May bug, read the article.
Description
The body of the insect, whose length reaches four centimeters, covers the chitinous shell. Its color can be different: from dark red to black. The body consists of three sections: head, chest and abdomen. On the head there are three segments, on the abdomen - eight. The limbs are located not only on the chest, but also on the head. On the abdomen they are not.
The chafer is endowed with three pairs of limbs. Each has several segments with motor ability, and claws. They insect clings to the support, which may be leaves, bark. The forelimbs are needed by the insect in order to dig the ground for laying eggs, so they are strong in the beetle.
The wings have a different structure and purpose. Only the rear ones take part in flight. Cockchafer is a clumsy insect, its flights are slow and heavy. The sensory organs help to navigate the space of the bug: vision, smell and touch. Long mustache (olfactory organ) beetles find food. Sometimes in her search they have to travel long distances.
The female is able to lay up to 70 eggs. To do this, she has to go deep into the ground by 10 centimeters. After this procedure, she dies. After 45 days, white larvae hatch from the eggs, which live in the ground for 3-4 years.
What time do the May bugs appear?
The genus of these insects has 24 species, 9 of them are inhabitants of the territory of our country. Their massive appearance coincides with the onset of spring, the peak of distribution occurs in May.
Beetles appear when oak buds and birch leaves begin to blossom. At this time, you can see how the May bugs crawl out of the ground and immediately fly up. They sit on trees and begin to eat their vegetative part, including flowers in their diet, thereby causing irreparable harm.
Khrushchev
So differently called an insect and its larvae. Where to catch the May bug? It is easy to find in places of habitual habitat, which are quail foliage, greenhouses, greenhouses and other areas with chernozem soil. The life span of the Khrushchev is small - three years. They grow up to 30 millimeters in length.
How to catch the May bug? Until it has become an adult, its larvae are dug out of the soil in which they hide. The depth of occurrence of horsetail is five to six centimeters.
Larvae appear by the end of summer. Roots of plants are enough for their nutrition. When the growth of the larvae ends, they pupate, after which May beetles are born. Inveterate fishermen use them to make fish: chub, asp, catfish and others. Rooks help determine the location of the accumulation of larvae in the ground. They flock to this place, as the Khrushchev is their favorite treat.
Large numbers of larvae can be found on trees. When the poplar fades, cones appear on its branches. If you open them, you can see the larvae.
Fishing
How to catch the May bug? To do this, you need to properly prepare. To collect a large batch of insects at a time, you will need a lantern, a bag and a funnel of tin. From these components you need to assemble a simple design. The lantern should be hung among the branches of trees, put a funnel under it, and tie the bag to the very neck of the funnel, the diameter of which should be larger than that of the lantern. This is due to the fact that when catching the May beetles you need to hit a tree. The insects bounce off. If the funnel and the lantern have the same diameter, the bugs will not fall into the trap, but will begin to fall to the ground. There should not be any holes or openings in the bag.
How to catch a bug in the evening? This can be done using the described construction. In the evening, when it becomes dark, the lamp turns on. Zhukov is very attracted to light, they will begin to fly to the lantern, bumping into its walls. Given that bugs fly at a certain speed, they will crash into the lantern, falling into a funnel whose walls are smooth. Insects fall quickly, so they don’t have time to catch their paws on the edges, and they end up in a bag. It remains to check the traps in the morning and collect the bugs.
For a larger catch, it is recommended to put several such structures. Collected beetles are easily moved to a storage container. They will live there for some time, and they will be completely healthy, since they did not receive any damage during the fall.
Catching a Beetle in the Evening
How to catch the May bug? The best time for this is May, due to which the insect got its name. It is during this period that the beetles are most active. They fly out of the ground hungry, so you can meet them everywhere, they populate shrubs and trees, regardless of breed. At the same time, May bugs continuously buzz. In the evening, you can collect beetles as follows. A white sheet is spread under the trees and the lantern is turned on. Beetles will begin to gather in the light. They need to be knocked down by hand, jacket or cap. Until they come to their senses, the sheet is folded, and the insects are placed in a jar for storage.
Beetle catching in the afternoon
This insect is quite awkward. How to catch a bug in the afternoon? The fact is that the flight of insects occurs at a low altitude, so it is not difficult to catch them. Enough to get a net or a small piece of fabric.
Beetles are not active in extreme heat. Where to catch a bug in the afternoon? At the peak of the sun, insects sleep, catching their paws on the leaves of trees. The plants need to be shaken harder, and the beetles will fall to the ground. It remains to collect them and place them in some container.
How to save insects until May next year?
The secret of storage is very simple. To do this, use a refrigerator. Beetles need to be placed in a glass jar and sprinkled with pieces of ice. About twice a month the jar is opened and the beetles are checked to see if they are spoiled. If any are found, they are thrown away, the jar is tightly closed again and left in the refrigerator. Moisture must not enter a glass container. Ice periodically needs to be changed.
You can store beetles without a refrigerator for up to four months. Sleeping tea is poured into a glass jar or moist sawdust from poplar is poured. Beetles are placed in a container, closed with a lid and put in a cool place. Before the frost, fishing is provided with fish bait.
How to catch a chub on a chafer?
If fishing will take place on a river of small width, use large steel hooks of small thickness. If the width of the river is large, another float is set on the fishing line. Fishing for the chafer beetle is carried out without a sinker. The idea is that the insect floats on the water surface, moving its paws, it is not immersed in water. Although for catching large-sized fish, the beetle is carried along the bottom.
It is best to catch a large chub or asp in the early morning, at sunrise, or in the evening when it sets. Favorite habitats for these fish are rapids, calm river flow or space under flooded shrubs and trees.
Usually, fishermen make several castings of fishing rods, but not along the river, but across it. When the bait is already on the surface of the water, you do not need to rewind the fishing line, it will stretch already under the influence of the current. On the contrary, it needs to be dropped from the coil, since the beetle will carry it over a long distance. After several casts, the beetle, of course, gets wet and drowns, instead of it you need to put on another hook.