Maggot is one of the most versatile and popular bait for various fish. In other words, they can be called larvae of flies. They are white with a cream tint. The maggot is mobile, it can creep into small cracks and holes. The habitat of the larvae is fish waste, trash and rotting meat pits. According to sanitary standards, even collecting them is contraindicated. A fly lays eggs on the remains of decomposing meat, from which subsequently larvae appear, called maggots. With good nutrition in warm weather, the larvae can reach up to 1.5 centimeters in length in just 5 days. Maggots, photos of which are posted below, clearly confirm this fact.
Species of flies
Breeding of maggots by amateur fishermen, both with artisanal breeding and for commercial purposes, is carried out using three main types of flies:
- Blue meat flies.
- Meat flies.
- House flies.
The size and shape of the larvae
Due to their size and shape, maggots flies are visually similar to caterpillars and resemble one of the most common types of aquatic larvae - caddis flies. Based on this, it is not surprising that the inhabitants of water bodies easily and quickly detect them, grab them, flatten them with their teeth and swallow them.
Shops mainly sell maggots for meat flies. They are comparatively larger than other larvae. The adult maggot of a meat fly can reach a length of up to 15 millimeters. When choosing bait, all amateur fishermen need to know this fact, because it is likely that larvae of different sizes can be offered in the store, which is bad from the point of view of storage. Most likely, this is the result of mixing maggots of different ages. Young individuals reach a length of about 4 millimeters. They are much more durable than mature larvae, so they can be stored much longer. In addition to size, young individuals have a distinctive feature - a dark spot. It shines through the shell of the front. In old larvae, which from day to day should turn into pupae, it is absent.
Using maggots as fishing lures
Maggot is a very resistant to external influence bait with a fairly strong shell. In this regard, it is necessary after holding it to hold the hook tip together with the beard open. Otherwise, the fish bite may be empty. When fishing on larvae there is a problem of "exhaustion" of the insides. This situation occurs when the fisherman has a weak reaction to bite. Being thrown into the water, maggots on the hook often return with empty skin without entrails. Perhaps the fisherman does a cut in time, so the fish has time to suck out the most delicious for her insides of the larva, and spit out her skin.
Undoubtedly, the strength of the shell is an advantage, as well as the fact that one bait in conditions of an active bite can be used several times to catch several fish specimens.
What hooks to use when fishing for maggots?
Maggots worms are very mobile, so you must use hooks that have a holding beard when fishing. By the way, on the packages of special hooks from imported manufacturers for larvae there is a maggot marking, which means “maggot” in English.
How to plant maggot?
The methods of planting larvae largely depend on the fishing conditions and behavior of the fish. The most popular option is the nozzle of one larva. With this method, the hook is hooked over the edge of the head, namely its flat end or the back of the bait. The dense shell of the bait holds perfectly on the hook. Due to this, the larva retains its natural appearance for a long time, which ensures its mobility on the hook.
A bunch is an effective way to plant larvae
There is another effective way of planting larvae, which is called a "bunch". This will require a larger hook. Maggots are planted on it in the same manner as described above, that is, several larvae are strung at the edge of the flesh. Proper donning will ensure mobility of all maggots that are located on the hook. Thus, the beam becomes an attractive bait for fish.
The disadvantage of this option is the following point. When fishing is carried out on a fishing rod with a reel, then after a long unwinding of equipment the leash twists, due to the fact that the bait acts as a propeller.
When catching small fish, there are situations when one gnawed bait has the opportunity to catch several fish. In this case, in order not to waste time replacing the bait, maggots can be planted by crocheting a puncture in the body right in the center, along the imaginary axis.
Hooks of large size are often masked by fishermen. A pair of larvae is pierced along the axis and shifted to the hook and forearm of the hook. The extreme larva clings to the edge of the head. Then the hook tip is released a little.
The combination of maggots and other lures
Maggot fishing is a good lure, but experienced anglers combine several types of bait to improve nibble. Maggot is in perfect harmony with other baits, such as bloodworms. A combination of maggot and bloodworm produces a kind of sandwich.
Combination options can be varied: maggot worm, maggot grasshopper, maggot dough, maggot fly and others. With additives in the form of various different lures, maggot fishing is noticeably improving.
Why does a fish peck on maggots?
It should be understood that maggot is not a permanent inhabitant of water bodies, so some fish probably do not perceive it as a food source. In such cases, you need to teach the fish to bait through the use of maggots as bait. This trick at times increases catches.
Maggot is a soft bait of natural origin, so it is a real treat for fish, but the inhabitants of the rivers are very careful and choosy in choosing food, because fishermen constantly visit them. There is one trick: if you paint the larvae brown, they cease to arouse suspicion, and the fish hurries to enjoy such an attractive bait.
It is important to know that only in the warm season the maggot is attractive to fish. In cold autumn and spring nights and days with such a bait, a sharp decrease in catch can be noted. At this time of the year, the best option would be to replace maggots with other lures. For example, grandmother, bloodworm, shitika and others.
If you still catch in cold water, it is best to use small size larvae, small hooks and light floats. Accordingly, such recommendations are only suitable for catching small fish. Such a trick will significantly increase the number of bites.
Storage methods
Fresh maggots have delicate skin, if pierced, then the insides will simply leak out. Therefore, you need to purchase it before fishing for a couple of days to give it time to insist.
It is best to store the larvae in the refrigerator. The temperature should be positive, close to zero. Maggots, photos of which you can consider in the article, with this method of storage become motionless and fall into a stupor. The processes of their life are slowing down. In this condition, they can be stored for up to two months.
Conservation
Preparation for conservation involves drying the larvae. For this, many fishermen use flour, but, as practice shows, this method is not suitable for long-term storage, since the flour quickly begins to mold. The best option is to add small sawdust of deciduous tree, which is odorless. After this, the maggots must be cooled, and then, separating them from the sawdust, placed in a container and close it tightly. This must be done in order to block access to air. The larvae tank is eventually placed in the refrigerator.
Another option for preservation is the addition of breadcrumbs in a box to maggot. From them, he will acquire a yellowish color, and the skin will become more durable.
Fishing preparation
Before fishing, the larvae should be returned to room temperature. Maggots for fishing should again become mobile. Based on this, it must be borne in mind that the high mobility of the larvae and their large number in one tank can harm them when transported over long distances. At the moment of high activity of the larvae, friction arises between them, which leads to the death of a certain number of specimens. To avoid this, the larvae are cooled before the trip, then carefully placed in a heat-insulating container, which can be made independently from any foam box or bought a special cover with foam foam inserts, for example.
However, it should be remembered that it is important not to overheat the larvae and not to freeze, otherwise they can die quickly.
Upon arrival at the place of fishing, immediately before the start of fishing, it is useful to soak the maggots in a jar, in which you first need to add a drop of anise oil. Half fill the jar with larvae and fill approximately the same volume with sawdust. It is best to keep the larvae throughout the whole fishing in this very bank. In its cover, you need to make holes for air. If the maggots are in the bank for a long time, its contents should be carefully sorted and removed from it dead specimens.
Pelvic larvae need not be thrown away. They can come in handy for bait in the summer.
Maggot at home. Cultivation methods
Flies eggs can be obtained in two ways:
- The summer option is to obtain from the substrate, that is, from fresh fish. You just need to leave the fish for several hours in the sun. The substrate, so aged, with the released eggs of the flies should be placed in a jar with sawdust and put in a cool, dry place. After about seven days, maggots will appear. They completely leave the substrate and move to sawdust. The remains of the substrate should be discarded unnecessarily, the remaining larvae should be sown and put in fresh sawdust. The unpleasant odors associated with the cultivation will disappear within 3 days.
- Winter option - growing in gauze nets. Cover the flies with a gauze net and feed them under the net. There they will certainly lay eggs, from which subsequently white worms with hard skin will come out. The main disadvantage is the laboriousness of catching the flies themselves and maintaining the appropriate temperature for their normal life. On average, flies begin to lay eggs from 3 to 6 days from the start of feeding. The substrate is prepared in the same way as in the summer, only they do not use the sun, but another source of heat.
Mature maggots should be kept at a temperature close to zero to slow their pupation. The most suitable and reliable place for them is the refrigerator. Room temperature favorably affects the development of larvae; therefore, in a three-day period, they become pupae. To obtain larger instances of larvae, it is necessary to add a fresh substrate in the middle of their development period, which should be free of fly eggs.
Breeding maggots at home is dangerous to human health, so strict rules should be followed, which include personal hygiene and accuracy in handling them. If you do not follow the prescribed rules, you can expose yourself to the risk of contracting various diseases.
Flavoring and staining
A process such as maggot breeding involves aromatization and staining procedures. Young individuals of white worms are better suited to such actions, which should be carried out by feeding them with special food. This is due to the fact that young larvae are more likely to eat it.
Maggot at home is difficult to stain, and this procedure does not always lead to the desired results. Therefore, it is safer and easier to purchase an already painted bait in a store.
To give the smell of bait, it is necessary to feed the larvae with flavorings. This procedure is carried out immediately before fishing.
Maggot is the larva of a large fly. And an indispensable element in fishing. Today, more and more amateur anglers prefer to catch it on such a popular bait as maggot. This is due to the fact that it is easy to attach it to the hook, on which it holds perfectly. This bait has an attractive smell, and sometimes this is the only bait that the fish does not ignore, like all others, but rather is always happy with it. Maggots, unlike other baits, are easy to store for a long time. In addition, you can also fish on it at any time of the year.