I decided to check my tackle box for a bag of yum dingers. I grabbed the bag and noticed it was wet. Then I saw little wiggly crawly things. They were maggots. I chedcked every other soft plastic bag which was wet as well and they also had maggots. I cleaned the bags as well I could out, and had to throw one bag of lizards away as the infestation was so bad. Anyone had this happen to them?

12 minutes ago, Joshua Kang said:

I decided to check my tackle box for a bag of yum dingers. I grabbed the bag and noticed it was wet. Then I saw little wiggly crawly things. They were maggots. I chedcked every other soft plastic bag which was wet as well and they also had maggots. I cleaned the bags as well I could out, and had to throw one bag of lizards away as the infestation was so bad. Anyone had this happen to them?

I would be out one tackle box.  The whole thing.  

Since I am a teenage kid and have barely any money I cant afford that... I probably will hold that tackle box at arms length though.

Put 'em on a hook under a bobber!

Flies got in there somehow. Weird.

I'm not positive but I think they need a food source.. that's why they are commonly found in trash... I've never heard of this... I've heard of rust.. plastics melting...maggots though... that's a little rough bud. And idk how young of a teen you are. But I had a part time job when i was in high school !  You could junk the box.. get a couple dividers and some plastics and a crank and a top water ,some terminal tackle. All for under 50. 

I have brought home bugs before in my tackle bag but never maggots.  Did you have food in your tackle box? 

15 hours ago, Yeajray231 said:

I'm not positive but I think they need a food source.. that's why they are commonly found in trash... I've never heard of this... I've heard of rust.. plastics melting...maggots though... that's a little rough bud. And idk how young of a teen you are. But I had a part time job when i was in high school !  You could junk the box.. get a couple dividers and some plastics and a crank and a top water ,some terminal tackle. All for under 50. 

perhaps his parents dont want him working while in  school. or perhaps he lives in a country area where there really is no work and you have to drive an hour to get anywhere. you make it sound so simple, but i dont think you really thought it through. $50 may not be a lot to you, but it is a lot to others...

MAGGOTS in the tackle box ~ that's a new one by me.

Not a fan.

A-Jay

53 minutes ago, Red Bear said:

perhaps his parents dont want him working while in  school. or perhaps he lives in a country area where there really is no work and you have to drive an hour to get anywhere. you make it sound so simple, but i dont think you really thought it through. $50 may not be a lot to you, but it is a lot to others...

Oh no. 50 bucks is important to me. I've had to cut back on my fishing spending alot. I agree tho.  Maybe you are right ! But if he did live in a rural situation I'm sure he could find someone on a farm who needed a hand a few hours on the weekend.. maybe he has no car.. you're right. I do not know his situation . I'm interested what he has to say. 

It's telling you that you need to fish for panfish.

More proof that maggots arise spontaneously.  And the earth is flat.

maggots=I usually encounter them on the highway,but never in my t box

 

Maggots come from flys. An adult fly lays small eggs in an area in which maggots are likely to find food. If some old bait like a dead minnow or nightcrawler was left in your tackle box, maggots may later be found

6 minutes ago, Scott F said:

Maggots come from flys. An adult fly lays small eggs in an area in which maggots are likely to find food. If some old bait like a dead minnow or nightcrawler was left in your tackle box, maggots may later be found

I still stand by the spontaneous generation theory.

But really, there HAD to be something in your box to attract flies.  Maggots are gross.

I can understand Gulp having maggots  but Yum Dingers .Just clean everything and put the Dingers in a  ziip lock bag . LOL , 

All I know is that tackle boxes can be cleaned out and cleansed - use windex or something similar - maybe lysol

Plastic baits can be separated out on the lawn or a screen and rinsed off with a hose.   Quart size zip lock bags are pretty cheap - so just repackage them.   I don't think that you need to throw anything out just due to some maggots.

As far as where they came from goes, I'd have to say that God put them there or he (maybe she) told them to go there.   Gods work in mysterious ways.    

Gross!  That maggot smell never goes away!  No matter how much you clean or spray, that maggot smell is always there!!

Are these the same guys that fillet fish and have blood and guts all over the cutting board ? Or use wax worms or nightcrawlers ? It's really not much different.  I agree they aren't the most pleasant.. and if you've ever seen a huge infestation of em its a little disturbing.. but some of these reactions..  Lets not be sissies. 

19 minutes ago, Yeajray231 said:

Lets not be sissies. 

No kidding.  Clean it up and be done with it.  Maggies are pretty clean really.  I've read that they secrete an ammonia solution or something similar which keeps them clean.  Since they are, or have been, used medically to clean wounds they can't be all bad.  Ain't that big of a deal and certainly not worth throwing out a good tackle box!

Hey, if you guys enjoy maggots so much, I'm happy for you.  I, on the other hand, am quite comfortable with my manhood while also wanting nothing to do with them.  So you don't look down on me for that, I won't look down on you for being Judgy McJudgersons.

It's just a little odd seeing outdoorsman so squeamish over little larvae 

22 hours ago, Catch 22 said:

maggots=I usually encounter them on the highway,but never in my t box

 

Classic! Haha.

Maggots only eat rotten/spoiled meat so there must have been non artificial bait in there for the flies to lay their eggs. Maggots themselves don't smell. It is the material that they infest that smells. They are still used in today's health care for cleaning wounds like bed sores with tissue necrosis . 

The only thing I can think of is that the flies were attracted to the "Live Prey Technology" (read: scent) mixed in them. 

Lucky for you, you just came across the next step in the progression of scent products to fish for bass.  Bottle that smell and sell it!  

If you find leeches in your thermos.....then your in trouble.