Zander is exactly that predatory fish, the hunt for which brings the greatest excitement. It is called the river tiger not only for its striped sides. The habits of zander are in many ways similar to the land predator: they hunt from ambush, do not feed on carrion, and leave the victim a minimum chance of survival.
Besides, how can you compare its tender white meat with pike or with some kind of perch? Yes, and not everyone can catch a river tiger, even knowing the habitat. But knowing his character, habits and using proven gear for catching zander, you will not leave him a chance.
Fishing gear
You can catch a river tiger with any device designed for fishing for predators, but not all of them work equally well for this fish. The most effective gear for catching zander is spinning, donka and predatory feeder.
All other constructions, for example, girders or mormyshka, can also be used, but most often you do not have to expect a good catch from them.
Spinning fishing for zander
Spinning with well-chosen equipment and bait is able to work wonders in catching a predator. And zander is no exception. Spinning gear is very mobile, does not require a long time to set up, and also gives the angler the opportunity to choose the right posting option in a specific place.
Considering its deep-water lifestyle, the most commonly used vibrating spinners, foam fish, as well as a variety of silicone tips such as vibro-tails, twisters, etc., are used as fishing lure for pike perch. The type of fishing has a huge impact on the outcome of fishing. For zander most often fishermen use twitching or jig.
The best spinning equipment for zander
However, neither the bait nor the wiring will provide a good catch if you do not pay enough attention to the equipment. Pike perch is not a pike, which, being hungry, rushes at everything, and not an omnipresent perch. In addition, he lives in places full of stones and snags, and attacks the victim solely from an ambush. Getting it out of there is problematic because of the danger of breaking the tackle.
Catching pikeperch on a
leash will protect you from such problems. Such equipment is also called Moscow. Why so, it is unknown, but they say that they came up with it in the capital. Why is it better than the classic spinning montage?
The catch of pike perch on a bypass has the following advantages:
- a more natural game of bait;
- increased sensitivity of gear;
- moving along the bottom and tapping the load additionally attracts a predator;
- low probability of direct hooks.
Mounting a Leash
The design is quite simple, so even a person who is not very versed in how to mount such gear can deal with it. A leash on a pike perch consists of the following elements:
- the main fishing line (preferably braided) 0.15-0.25 mm thick, about 100 meters long;
- the diverting lead from monolesk with a maximum cross section of 0.2 millimeters, a length of about 100 centimeters;
- lead cargo, better rounded, weighing 5-30 grams;
- swivel tee;
- 2 carabiners.
To begin with, you need to cut off a piece about 30 centimeters long from the main fishing line. At one end, fasten the load through the carabiner, and attach the other to one of the branches of the swivel-tee. Attach the main fishing line to the opposite branch of the tee in such a way that you get the usual straight tackle with a load at the end and a free side ear of the swivel. To it will be attached or fixed with the help of a carabiner diverting leads for catching pike perch. They can be prepared in advance, of various lengths, with hooks or jig heads, as well as with a variety of ready-made lures.
Some predator anglers recommend the use of fluorocarbon leash for fishing zander. This predator, unlike pike, does not have the habit of biting them, but unnecessary precaution will not hurt.
Lure for fishing perch on a lead
To lure zander, you can use such nozzles as:
- vibrotail
- twister;
- ripper;
- wobbler;
- foam rubber fish;
- live bait, including snul (dead).
Silicone bait
Catching pikeperch on a leash using silicone lures, such as a vibrotail, twister or ripper, significantly increases the likelihood of biting, especially if you choose the right color.
During the period of the greatest activity of this predator, it is best to use brighter baits. In late summer and autumn, silicones of yellow and red colors work well. But in spring and summer, baits of natural colors are more suitable: white, silver, as well as muted pink and green.
Wobblers
Catching a zander on an outboard with a wobbler is also very effective. However, do not give preference to large models. It is best to use sinking wobblers that mimic fry.
Suspenders work well in the fall - bait with zero buoyancy, used for fishing in the water column. During this period, zander is most active at night. Very often, in search of prey, he goes to the surface of the water, and also approaches the shore.
However, at night the pike perch on a diverting lead with a wobbler or silicone is unlikely to behave. Still, the lack of visibility plays a significant role here. But live bait or the foam rubber impregnated with an attractant (flavoring) do their job perfectly. These are the only night lures that can seduce zander.
Bait fish and foam fish
Live bait is most often mounted on a single hook by the lips or nostrils, so that when wiring it moves forward. You can also use a dead fish, but its effectiveness in comparison with a living one will be quite low.
Foam fish with a certain smell, of course, are effective for night fishing, but for day fishing their use is not justified. The material does not allow the bait to sufficiently repeat the movements of live fish, so during the day the pike perch rarely reacts to such nozzles.
Leash Spinning Rod
Catching a zander from shore to spinning involves casting over a long distance. After all, finding this predator near the coastal zone is a rarity. In order for the casting to be as accurate and long-range as possible, regardless of the equipment used, you will need a fishing rod 2.5-3 meters long. This is the average length for spinning, but it will be quite enough for any fishing. The construction of the rod is fast or medium, the use of blanks of the parabolic system for catching zander is not justified. When fighting, he rarely has serious resistance, and specimens weighing more than 5 kilograms are not common. The test form should be 10-40 grams.
Spinning wiring
Pike-perch fishing on a bypass leash is mainly used for fishing in the cold season: in early spring and late autumn. During this period, zander is either too active or practically does not crawl out of its abode. In order for fishing to be successful, you can use postings such as:
- uniform
- “stop and go” wiring;
- jig or step;
- twitching.
With the greatest activity of the predator, uniform wiring is perfect. To carry it out, you need to cast and wait until the load sinks to the bottom, as indicated by the tip of the spinning. After that, you can begin to rewind the fishing line with uniform movements without pauses. It is important to feel the movement of the load along the bottom. With a faster movement of the spool, the bait will be in the water column.
Posting "stop and go" also involves fishing in the near-bottom space, but in contrast to the uniform, pauses of two to three seconds are made here. This option can be used with low zander activity.
Stepped wiring or jig is considered the most effective for catching zander. Use it regardless of the time of year and the activity of the predator. The essence of the stepped wiring is that the bait is allowed to sink to the bottom, after which four to five sharp turns of the coil are made, during which the nozzle comes off the surface, bounces and falls again. Between these pull-ups, a pause is made, the value of which is determined by the fisherman himself, but is no more than ten seconds.
When twitching, the tackle is jerked not by rotating the spool, but by a sharp movement of the spinning rod to the side or by a low-amplitude twitching of its tip. Such vibrations annoy and attract zander. Most often, such wiring is used to trap the territory and search for places of predator parking. Have a nice catch!