What is Live Bait for Saltwater Fishing?

For most saltwater anglers live bait for fishing is a clam or box of blood worms but bait choice can be much more complicated than just those two items.  Anglers can often use crabs, clams, shrimp, eels, pinfish, menhaden, squid, ballyhoo among others.  There are other very productive baits that are not often used such as bluefish or scup.  When using these baits which are also considered gamefish please assure you follow local regulations. This article has some great information about how to Catch And Keep Bait For Saltwater Fishing.

The state of Connecticut defines live bait as:  

Bait: Any animal or vegetable, or their parts, living or dead, used with a hook for the purpose of attracting and catching fish. Any fish legally acquired, except largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, chain pickerel, northern pike, trout, salmon, carp and goldfish may be used as bait.

Bait Regulations

Each state has complicated regulations on live bait species, how they can be caught and how they can or cannot be transported between bodies of water.  These regulations are designed to keep bait stocks viable and to minimize cross stocking fish and contamination of certain protected waters.  Here are links to state regulations for bait fishing.

• Connecticut
• New York
• New Jersey
• Massachusetts

Other individual state regulations can be found in our list of State Fisheries Departments from our article Finding Secret Fishing Spots.

Sample regulations for CT in 2020

For personal use/not for sale:  Recreational license required in marine district.  Net and traps which may be used to catch bait species only (see species list below)

• Cast Nets
• Minnow Traps: no larger than 20” long by 15″ in diameter
• Umbrella Nets: not more than 4 ft. in length by 4 ft. in width
• Scoop Nets: no larger than 36” in diameter
• Seines: no longer than 30 feet in length
• Up to two eel pots
• Hook & Line
• By hand

Species that may be taken using the gear listed above

• Menhaden
• Striped Killifish and Banded Killifish
• Atlantic Silverside
• Tidewater Silverside
• Mummichogs
• Sea Herring (Atlantic Herring)
• Sand Lances (Sand Eels)
• American Eel
• Sea Lamprey
• Bay Anchovy
• Mullet Species
• Sheepshead Minnow
• Shrimp Species
• Green, Fiddler, Asian Shore and Hermit Crabs

Bait for Saltwater Fishing

The capture and successful keeping of live bait for fishing seems simple, but there are key items to be more successful.  Live bait is attractive to most fish if it is lively and fresh.  Baitfish that are sluggish or dead will often not catch as many fish as frisky and active baits.  

You can check our article on Fish Hooks for Live Bait Fishing for more information on bait fishing.  Please check with state and local regulations on the rules and limits for catching your own bait.  For some items such as clams each town can have their own restrictions and closed areas.

Crabs

There are many species of crabs that can be used for bait including, asian crabs, white crabs, blue crabs, hermit crabs among others.  For certain fish such as Tautog or Permit, crabs are by far the preferred live bait.

Asian crabs and hermit crabs can be collected in at low tide.  The tactic of flipping flat rocks to find Asian crabs can be quite effective as seen in this video by John Skinner.

Blue crabs can be caught with nets, handlines, or traps.  Using bait such as bunker or other fish scraps or chicken necks are often quite productive.  Blue crabs can be often found under docks or near bridge pilings.

Keeping Crabs

Keeping crabs is not difficult.  They can be kept in aerated pails or in a bait net in the water.  For short term storage, crabs can be kept in a cooler with a damp rag and over ice packs.   Do not let ice water to collect as this will kill the crabs.

Menhaden/Bunker

Menhaden are prized for their use to catch large predatory game such as striped bass and bluefish.  Large schools of menhaden  can often be seen milling about just under the water surface in open water, bays or near sheltered marinas.  These are the best locations to catch them.  They can be caught with snag hooks (medium sized weighted treble hooks).  It is best to use a stout heavy rod when trying to snag bunker.  Cast beyond the school and jerk the snag hook back quickly.    Menhaden can also be caught in large numbers with cast nets.  Please check local regulations prior to using nets for bunker.

Keeping Menhaden

It is possible to keep bunker alive in a well circulating live well, but they do not keep for a long time, so it is best to use them as soon as they are caught.  Luckily, Menhaden can also be fished effectively either dead or as chunks.  You can read more about this in our article Chunking for Striped Bass and Bluefish.

Blood Worms

Blood worms are highly effective baits for many species from scup and fluke to striped bass.  They are also quite expensive if you buy them from the bait store.  You can catch your own blood worms by digging in muddy or sandy banks at low tide.  You can use a wide tined rake to dig 2 to 4 inches of sand/mud where the worms hide.  You can also find blood worms under rocks on the wet sand or mud.   It is best to try to catch them within 1 hour of the lowest tides.

While this might not be relevant for North America, here is an interesting video on baiting and catching sand worms in Australia.  As with other things Aussie, they are huge typically 1-3 feet long.

Keeping Blood Worms

Blood worms are easy to keep fresh in damp seaweed or sand in a vented container.  They should not be wet, but only damp.  It is best to keep them cool, but they do not need to be on ice.   You can freeze leftover bloodworms if you salt them and then dry them with a paper towel.  They can then be sealed in a zipper bag and frozen.

Mole Crabs/Sand Fleas

Mole crabs or sand fleas are often overlooked as bait for most anglers.  They can be caught on beaches where you have gentle wave action.  The crabs are seen as a group of small “v” shaped ripples clustered together on the outgoing wave.   These are the crabs sticking their heads above the sand to feed.  You can catch them by digging or most use sand flea rakes to sift through 2 to 4 inches of the sand.  They will dig deeply if you make too much impact on the sand so walk lightly as you near the group of crabs.

Keeping Mole Crabs

Sand fleas can be easily kept in a bait bucket with moist (not wet) sand. They should not be submerged in water and require air to breathe.

Eels

Eels are one of the best baits for large striped bass and cobia.  Eels can be caught in bays and rivers using eel pots or traps when baited with fish scraps.  They can also be caught by hook and line using small cut bait.

How to Keep Eels

Eels can be kept in a bait bucket with seaweed and kept cool.   They also can be kept in the water in a sealed trap or net for longer storage times.

Baitfish – Spot, Pinfish, Mullet, Ballyhoo, Pilchards

There are many species of small baitfish that are great for catching large predatory fish.  At times gamefish can be selective so it is best to have a few different types of baits to try.  Bait fish can be caught in a variety of methods including:

• Sabiki Rigs
• Small hooks baited with worm or shrimp bits
• Cast Nets or Dip Nets
• Bait Traps
• Specialized Nets – Ballyhoop

Sabiki rigs are used on a medium action fishing rod and can often be quite effective at catching many baitfish quickly.  It is best to use an unhooking tool to minimize handling of fragile bait fish.

Baitfish can often be attracted to a spot with fish meal or cat food and then captured in a cast net, dip net or trap.  It is best to find a spot around a jetty or marina.     You can also catch bait such as pinfish and spot using small hooks (gold color) and tips of worm or shrimp.

Some baits such as Mullet are primarily caught with cast nets only.

Keeping Baitfish

To keep baitfish frisky and alive it does require effort and planning.  It is best to have a large, aerated cooler or live well where you can periodically change the water and not overload them.   Live wells on larger boats pump fresh sea water at continuously to keep bait fresh.   If you can keep them in a trap or net in the water, it is even better.  Bait can be held effectively in a standalone container with a strong aerator if they are not overcrowded.  It is best to use the baitfish shortly after they are caught.

Squid

Squid are often used as bait for many species.  They can be caught with specialized squid jigs.  Typically, they are caught near dock lights and at dusk or overnight.  The rig involves a small sinker below the jig that is tied with a loop knot.  The rig is casted and retrieved across the bottom with a lifting motion, stop/go type action.  Once any resistance or weight is felt on the line, reel up and keep tension on the line as the jigs have barbless hooks.  Squid have a sharp beak and also can squirt ink, so be careful when handling them.

Keeping Squid

Squid can be kept in a manner like bait fish a cooler or bucket with proper aeration.   Anglers often use squid as dead bait either whole or in strips, so it is not necessary to always keep them alive.  Dead squid can be kept on ice or frozen.

Clams

Clams can be caught all year depending upon local regulations using a simple clam rake or drag.  The clams are often right on the bottom or buried just below the bottom.  Here is a video from John Skinner on catching clams during the winter including underwater footage and a recipe.  There are individual local regulations on clams so please make sure to check with state and local rules prior to clamming.

SUMMARY

Tight lines …  Captain P.