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Wondering if folks ever cast net small shad and use them for bait instead of minnows? I’ve heard a local guide does it and while he doesn’t catch as many crappie, he tends to catch more slabs that way. Bigger bait = bigger fish.
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My Grandparents used to, but they used a long handled wire mesh net (homemade), but I don't remember them catching any more Crappie than we did with minnows. Their running buddies used to cut the Shad in half & use them, lifting their lines every now & then to keep the "bait" moving (& probably to shake off the "smell" into the water).
I've done it with a cast net, but mostly for Hybrid Stripers. I really don't remember catching all that many Crappie, though, when I did fish for them with the smaller Shad. I used a 3/8" mesh net for the Hybrid Striper size bait, and a 1/4" mesh net for the Crappie size bait.
The biggest problem is keeping the Shad alive for any extended period of time, which usually requires more than just a 5gal bucket and a bubbler :biggrin
In some states, you have to have a permit, to be able to catch them. So read up on your states laws.
If you watch Richard Gene as i do, you will often hear him talk about how important the presence of shad schools are with regard to Crappie.
In fact he stresses looking for them first in the area you plan on fishing.
So is he referring to minnows?
Ive also seen him cast net them and use them as bait.
I enjoy Richard’s videos a lot. He’s a great fisherman. He is speaking about schools of actual shad (juvenile size - about 2-3”). I would guess that is probably the natural forage for most lake / river crappie, while pond fish probably eat minnows, baby bluegill, or whatever else they can fit down their throat. Just wanted to see if anyone uses shad for bait consistently and if so, how well it might work compared to minnows.
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Well if they are simply juvenile shad then at some point they become adult shad which im familiar with.
But im not aware of any shad in the lakes i fish here in Florida. I am aware of shiners, which are targeted here on some of the lakes i fish by commercial shiner fishermen using bait and cast nets.
I do know that the places i buy minnows get them from out of state, which surprised me.
So maybe the bait schools i see are small shiners, or are they simply shiners?
Meaning the only minnows in the lakes are the ones people like me release when it’s time to leave?
You’re going to have a hard time keeping the shad alive long enough to use it. The striper guides that fish with shad have special rounded, large, bait tanks and are constantly fiddling with them, adding salt, cleaning the filter, etc.
Anyone ever try to keep them alive in one of those jumbo minnow trolling buckets? Or one of those floating laundry baskets? Seems like that might eliminate having to fuss with the water quality. Maybe I just need to go out and try it and report back, lol.
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Posted3/29/2020
A 5 gallon plastic pickle bucket with the lid from Berger King makes a great bait tank and the price is right. Most fast food Berger joints will usually give to these buckets, some might charge you $0.50 or so.
Actually water quality IS a real big deal when it comes to keeping bait healthy and alive in all summer bait tanks and livewells. The magic inside the best bait tank IS the water quality inside the bait tank.
I think the best bait tank is the bait box that will keep shiners, shad and other baits healthy and alive all day every summer when environmental water gets into the 80’s and 90’s F.
We all know that most live bait fishermen may say they never have any bait problems in the summer, they can manage their water quality and never overstock their bait tanks. Some do have serious problems every summer because they cannot maintain minimal safe water quality and overstock their bait tanks depleting the dissolve oxygen quickly. Their bait catches the red-nose, gets sloppy and dies in short order.
About Livewells, bait tanks and water qualityhttp://oxyedge-chum.com/livewells-bait-tanks-and-water-quality/
How does anyfisherman make great bait tank water quality?
- Always have plenty dissolved oxygen
- Add a little salt to aid osmoregulationand electrolyte balance
- Change the bait tank water a few timedaily to control dissolved CO2, acid water, excess ammonia and nitrites and thebig chunks of feces, scales and urine
- And don’t overcrowd the bait tank with bait.
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Plenty oxygen does not mean plenty air or plenty water pumped through bait tanks/livewells with high volume water pumps. Don’t be confused between air and oxygen. Insuring minimal safe dissolved oxygen saturation is absolutely vital.
That’s about all there to insuring great water quality in any brand bait tank, ice chest or 5 gallon plastic bucket.
Yes sir, I like shad for crappie, especially around docks and bridges...
Shad tanks and filters are a necessity for shad. It's not lack of oxygenated water or temperature that kills them its the loose shad scales that get in their gills and suffocate them. That's why guides and striper fishermen use rounded bait tanks with recirculating pumps that continually re-circulate the water through a filter that catches the loose shad scales. The round tank keeps the from injuring themselves. You can build a home made filter for about anything including live wells. Foam filters that are washable work well.
Yep, those shad sluff-off a tremendous amount of scales and slime in the summer, substantially less in the fall and winter. They die a lot quicker in bait tanks in the summer than the winter too, but they live and thrive in the same summer water in lakes and rivers and don’t sluff off scales and die.
I can see where all those loose scales floating around in bait tanks are such a killer in the summer, just chokes those little buggers.
Why do the scales flake off so much more in the summer and they produce more slime in bait tank than any other time of the year? Why do you think shad do that?
Slime you are seeing is actually oil produced from the shad. Shad has oil glands in their heads and produce more oil in warmer water. We all use a fine salt in our tanks to keep the shad healthier. Also use it with minnows / shiners. Bait stays a lot more active and healthier with salt added. I buy a fine stock salt in a 25 lb bag at our local Atwoods for around 4.00 that lasts a couple years.
Do you mean like that “spermaceti oil” in whale heads?
Shad shad are killer on crappie around bridges
Great debate / info here. My local crappie lake just closed earlier this week, but I will definitely net some shad and give it a try when all of this pandemic craziness goes down. Thanks for all of the tips. Stay safe and tight lines!
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I used to make two or three trips to Dale Hollow Tenn. every fall and we would string a seine across a boat slip with a rock in the middle of the seine to hold the center down.. the edge of the seine would be just a couple of inches above the water. we then would hang a bright light over the center of the seine and leave it over night.. every morning there would be a couple dozen shad in the net...great bait for big crappie and smallmouth.. we would also hang lanterns over the side of our docked boat at night and bring in big schools of shad then snag the little shad with a small treble hook and then let the shad sink down below the school and catch big crappie about 10 or 15 feet below the school of shad