Thread: Tilapia - how the heck you catch them.

I've been told to use store bought noodles
put wad on hook - they are vegatarions
I like the idea of Oatmeal allowed to sink in front of them to get used to it
then could make a bait ball out of it and or use the noodle idea
They are good eating - i've been told

I use to take a small treble hook and put hydrilla or some other lake grass and hide the hook and throw it in the bed and wait for the fish to pick it up they won't eat it but the will clean out the bed so you have to set the hook as soon as they pick it up be patient and and let it sit in the bed with slack line

Lots of great advise. I may have to try some of them (but maybe not Huntinslabs Snicker Bar idea though, yuk). I did throw some oatmeal out there and they don't seem to touch it. Maybe they did after a while, but I did not observe them eat anything except that super green/hairy weed that's growing over here. Thanks guys.

I got a thingy in the mail today inviting me to a "free" dinner at Dixie Crossroads
to listen to a sales pitch etc, etc.
One of the dinner selections on the menu was Tilapia, lol .........


Now ...............
I do sell a "fish caller" that has been certified to work with Tilapia as well as
other kinds of fish.
For only $19.95 you can try it out for thirty days, if not satisfied, return it for full refund.
If you call within the next five minutes, I'll double your offer, plus throw in a
bladder de-airing tool worth $12.73 ......

Can't hurt to try bread Slab, soak in water as thick as bread for 5 minutes then put inside a few sheets of newspaper between old books & weight on top over night, should be able to weave the bread on a small hook in about a nickle size & stay on for a little while, the bluegills will want it too.....Yelim had a good tip in keeping it near the bottom, also heard corn works....slip bobber, split-shot & hook should be all that's needed.

Crossbow with line attached to bolt should be help - aim & fire await action to start

You're making me go waaaaaay back in the archives. Bread, oats, anything like that is gonna fall apart as it sits in the water. Usually just before the fish takes interest and eats it without the hook that just fell out. As a kid on Long Island, I spent a lot of time in the summer trying to catch Carp. Some were large gold carp, or goldfish, that had been released at some point and bred with the locals. 2 and 3 colors weren't uncommon. Dad delivered mail and a pet shop on his route would buy them for $.50 each. Major funds in that day for a kid. Over time I refined the doughball thing to a science. End result, leave all that junk in the store. Buy a half sized package of Pillsbury buttermilk biscuits. Now if you open the pack, they're gonna dry out and they suck to eat. Don't ask How I know that. Although if it's hot enough and you have time and asphalt and a piece of tinfoil, they will cook. Take your pocket knife and punch a small hole ( to start with) in the end of the container. Twist the blade a little and the pressure will push out just a little at a time. Take that and hook it on the point of the hook, then wrap the rest around the shank to point to shank to point and so on, until it has formed a ball. Mush it just a little to set it all together and cast it, weightless, into the area desired. Don't put the rod down cuz lots of stuff has gotten the memo on Pillsbury's. I financed a new rod and reel one summer this way, and no one could figure out how I could cast a doughball. End of lesson, now lets see some fish pictures.

Too bad they aren't like the invasive Oscars in the canals. I was down at Okeechobee first of April and I tried to find something they wouldn't eat. I actually had one hit a bare hook I threw back in the water after unhooking one I just caught. Darn near jerked my rod overboard. You literally cannot toss a live cricket in the Everglades canals and have it survive for 30 seconds. We tried it!