Last week we discussed the advantages and disadvantages of lures, as well as several different types of fishing lures you can use when you go out on the water. This week we will cover more of the types of fishing lures including spinnerbaits, plugs, and flies, as well as helping you determine which fishing lures would work best for you when sports fishing on the water.
As a refresher, fishing lures are an artificial bait that is meant to lure the fish over to a fishing line or hook. Lures use movement, vibration, flash and color to bait fish.
Types of Fishing Lures (Part Two)
Spinnerbaits and buzzpaits aren’t attractive looking lures – they consist of a safety-pin like wire that’s attached to a lead body. The lead body is dressed with a rubber skirt and the arm has one or two metallic blades that are often seen on spinners. All of this fools a fish’s sense of sound and movement. The best way to fish with a spinnerbait is to cast it out and work it so propels along the surface at a moderate speed.
Plugs are fishing lures that splash across the surface of the water attracting attention from any fish you’re trying to catch. These fishing lures in particular draw a reaction bite from predators (and are typically caught once they do that). Fishing plug lures are constructed from hollow wood or plastic and are made to resemble baitfish or other attractive (to your fish) prey that can be found in the water (such as insects).
Fishing plug lures typically have two or three treble hooks attached. These fishing lures can be used at almost ANY depth – some are made to float or dive or both, it all depends on the design. A plug can wobble, rattle, or gurgle. They come in all sizes and there are different kinds of plugs including: crankbaits, jerkbaits, surface plugs, floating/diving plugs, and poppers. Poppers are fishing lures (often used in the saltwater) that splash across the surface of the water that draw a reaction bite from predators.
Flies are another type of fishing lure used, although they are traditionally used with fly fishing equipment more so than spinning gear. However, spinning gear can cast flies too, as long as you add a clear bubble float. Flies are light fishing lures that can imitate insects as well as baitfish, and even leeches. Flies are constructed from fur or feathers but can also be made up of foam or rubber. Fly fishing lures can be wet or dry. Dry flies float on the surface of the water (and will typically be attached to something that floats to help them float). Wet flies are designed to be fished below the surface of the water.
Fishing Lures – Which One is Best for You?
Now that you understand basic fishing lures and how they are used, we should discuss why and how some of these work in saltwater sportsfishing. All of these can be used in saltwater and although most sports fishing game should be attracted by live saltwater bait or cut bait, sometimes these fishing lures can attract bigger fish.
The first thing you need to do is consider how fish feed. Fish typically sense a meal by scent, sound, and/or movement. Sound travels faster through water than through air and so fish can hear fishing lures that are a long way off. Fish also have another sense, called a lateral line that runs down each side of a fish, it’s full of tiny hairs that can detect movement in the water. The fish can sense a moving object (like a fishing lure) and then go after it. Even in clean, clear water, fish can only see colors and shapes, so you should be able to fool a fish with a lure. However, fish are fairly sensitive in regards to taste. This means that not all types of fishing lures can work with all fish. You must fool all of a fish’s senses if you want to catch “the big one”.
This is one great website that helps anglers discover which lure would be best for them depending on the fish they want to catch, we hope this helps you when trying to decide what kind of lures to get
That concludes our series about fishing lures. Think about which fishing lures might work best for you and if you’d like to use a lure at all when fishing with us in Hawaii. Next week, we’ll cover spinnerbaits, plugs, flies, and, of course, which ones work best on the open sea.
If you’d like to try out fishing lures and go fishing with us (using bait or lures depending), call us at (808) 960-1424 to book your Kona fishing charter.