Can i use bluegill as bait

You could use a bait hook or octopus hook, but I feel for catfish using bluegills as bait, you really should go with a circle hook.

Using live bluegills is the best way to target trophy flathead catfish. These monsters prefer their bait whole and alive. Channel catfish and blue catfish will also eat living bluegills but they have smaller mouthparts and simply prefer dead cut bait over living bluegills. To fish with whole live bluegills, you have two ways to rig it.

In water without current, run your circle hook through the back behind the dorsal fin. To rig bluegill for moving water, hook the bluegill through the nose with the hook point oriented upwards.

This will make the fish more aerodynamic and reduce snags from moving debris. Sometimes bluegills die. Sometimes the situation of target species requires half a bluegill instead. To fish with whole dead bluegill, you have two ways to rig it. To rig dead bluegill in moving water, hook the bluegill through the nose with the hook point oriented upwards. This is by far the best way to catch big flatheads with dead bluegills as they prefer whole bait.

Living bluegills will work better for big flatheads but whole dead bluegills is a close second. My favorite way to fish catfish with dead bluegills is by cutting the bluegills in half. You can use the head and the back sections each as bait.

This is optional but I like to cut off the tail as well since this will give smaller catfish something to latch onto so they can tear your bait off the hook. I simply just cut my tails off.

This is the best method for blue catfish and channel cats who prefer their baits in pieces. Another great way to fish with dead bluegills and really any dead baitfish is to cure them.

The beauty of curing your baitfish is it helps preserve the meat, makes the meat tougher and less likely to breakdown on the hook, and add some great flavor and scent to the bait. There are plenty of cures on the market and they all seem to do the trick.

You could also add some curing dye to the mixture to include some color which could help big fish find your bait.

You could also fish with them whole or cut them up in pieces. I recommend highly that you attach bells or some type of electronic strike indicating system on your rod tip or rod. What you do need bells for, however, is to tell you when you are getting bit.

Catfish are notorious for grabbing baitfish and tearing them off the hook. It is very important you know exactly when you are getting a bite. If you get a bite and then nothing for 5 minutes, chances are very strong you have no bait on your hook. Instead, the bell will tell you immediately when something is messing with your bait. If the rod goes silent for a few minutes, you can bet you need to add more bait.

This is especially the case when using bluegills as bait. Even small catfish love attacking and eating bluegills. Buy some bells at your bait shop. They are very cheap. Flathead Catfish: Whole living bluegills inches long. Dead whole bluegills work well too. We love to hear from you.

The author of this post is Bob Hoffmann. Bob has spend most of his childhood fishing with his father and now share all his knowledge with other anglers. Feel free to leave a comment below. Ask anyone who's been in a hostile environment, and they'll tell you that you can never have too much safety gear. Keeping safe while ice fishing is all about managing your level of risk. With the We all want to gain that advantage over the fish we catch, and what better way than to time our visit so that they are most active?

The best time for ice fishing is either early in the morning or Skip to content Using bluegill for catfish bait can certainly increase the odds of catching the bigger catfishing strolling beneath the water surface.

Why do Catfish Like Bluegill? Where to Get Bluegill For Catfishing? How do we catch cut bait or live bluegill for catfishing?

Continue Reading. Black bass and crappie may only be caught with a hook and line if used as live bait. For more information, please visit Kansas Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism. Licensed Anglers are allowed to possess a daily maximum of baitfish, which must be nongame species only except for redear sunfish less than 6 inches long. This limit includes shad except on lakes where possession or use of shad is prohibited and herring.

The following species may only be used in the same waters from they were collected:. For more detailed information, please read the Louisiana Fishing Regulations. For more detailed information, please visit Mainerec. However, there are certain regional restrictions to that law.

Baitfish shall not be obtained in the following areas waters:. Additionally, the possession and use of minnows for live bait are illegal in Deer and Swan Creek in Harford County. For more information, please visit Maryland Fishing and Crabbing.

Baitfish may be caught by licensed anglers at any time for personal use if lawful methods for catching bait are applied. Possession or use of smelt as bait in inland waters during any other time than the smelt season is illegal. For detailed information on methods for obtaining baitfish, smelt season periods, and further regulations, visit Massachusetts Freshwater Fishing Regulations.

Any species, which has been caught legally, may be used as bait, with the exception of lampreys, carp, and goldfish. Caught baitfish must only be used in the inland stream, lake, or Great Lake, or in a connecting waterway where the fish were caught.

Commercial collection and sale of minnows, wigglers, and crayfish from the wild require a DNR license and a monthly harvest reporting to the department. For more information, please visit the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

Minnesota allows the use of a variety of live and dead bait for fishing, including minnows. It is illegal to use whole or parts of any game fish, goldfish, or carp for bait in the state of Minnesota. For more detailed information, please read the Minnesota Fishing Regulations. All game fish, nongame gross fish, goldfish, and minnows are legal to use for live bait in the state of Mississippi , as long as daily creel limits are kept and they were caught legally.

Additionally, minnows, nongame gross fish, and nongame fish can be harvested for personal use as bait without the need for a valid commercial fishing license. For more information, please visit the Mississippi Outdoor Digest. Crayfish, freshwater shrimp, southern leopard frogs, plains leopard frogs, cricket frogs, and nongame fish. Bullfrogs and green frogs taken under season limits and methods can also be used as live bait. Live bait taken from public waters in the state of Missouri may not be sold or transported to other states or waters.

For more detailed information, visit the Missouri Department of Conservation. The state of Montana has very strict laws for the use of live bait. With a few exceptions, it is illegal to use live fish for bait in this state. In waters that allow the use of live bait, only nongame fish may be used for bait. Additionally, all import and export of live baitfish are prohibited. On the other hand, all nongame fish can be used as dead bait, if their heads and entrails have been removed, or if they are preserved and frozen.

For more detailed information on the legal use of baitfish in the Central and Eastern Districts of the state, please visit Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks. The state of Nebraska also has a long list of lakes that do not allow the use of live bait. For detailed information, please read the Nebraska Fishing Regulations and Information.

The state of Nevada mostly prohibits the use of live bait. It does however list a few regional exceptions. To get detailed regional information, please visit the Nevada Fishing Guide. For more detailed information, visit New Hampshire Fish and Game. The state of New Jersey allows the use of live bait in all freshwater areas of the state. Any person with a valid fishing license may use live baitfish.

For Herring, Alewife, and Blueback. The state does however have daily limits of the number of baitfish and some specific regional regulations. Fish other than minnows may be used as bait. Typically, bluegills and perch are used in this fashion. However, if there is a minimum length limit for the baitfish on that water, it still applies.