Just now, Eric Matechak said:

do you catch mosquito fish on a hook? with insect larval flies?

I have caught lots of mosquito fish while micro fishing with small hooks. I used bread for bait.

1 hour ago, soflabasser said:

I have caught lots of mosquito fish while micro fishing with small hooks. I used bread for bait.

o ok nice

18 hours ago, RoLo said:

 

One day on the St Lawrence River, I noticed a tight swarm of small carp in shallow water (maybe 2 to 5 lbs).

I beached the boat on the island and approached the carp school on foot. I was smallmouth bass fishing

and had a 3/16 oz orange ballhead jig tied on. With nothing to lose, I cast the jig into the heart of the school,

let it settle to the bottom, then jerked the jig hard. Surprisingly, I foul-hooked a carp,

reeled it ashore and released it. On my next cast, I fouled hooked a second carp (How lucky can you get?).

After about 6 back-to-back carp, it finally dawned on me, you're not "foul-hooking" them stupid!

Every carp was hooked in the rubbery lips. This was about 25 yrs ago, but I still have no rational explanation.

 

Roger

 

Rubber lips is the only place the hook will stick. That or a fin 

3 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

Rubber lips is the only place the hook will stick. That or a fin 

 

That's true, but I caught a carp on 'every' cast. It wasn't until I caught about a half dozen consecutively

when it dawned on me: these fish are not being foul-hooked. There's lots of open space

between the mouth of each carp, but every time I snapped the jig,

it was surrounded by rubber lips.

 

Several years ago, I related this same story here on BR, and it only generated one theory.

One member said that carp sometimes eat berries that fall from fruit trees, and probably mistaken

my orange ballhead jig for a fallen berry. That's news to me, and I've never heard of that scenario.

In fact, I've never even figured out why a school of immature carp would be tightly swarmed in shallow water

Things that make you go Hmmm.

 

Roger

 

4 hours ago, RoLo said:

 

That's true, but I caught a carp on 'every' cast. It wasn't until I caught about a half dozen consecutively

when it dawned on me: these fish are not being foul-hooked. There's lots of open space

between the mouth of each carp, but every time I snapped the jig,

it was surrounded by rubber lips.

 

Several years ago, I related this same story here on BR, and it only generated one theory.

One member said that carp sometimes eat berries that fall from fruit trees, and probably mistaken

my orange ballhead jig for a fallen berry. That's news to me, and I've never heard of that scenario.

In fact, I've never even figured out why a school of immature carp would be tightly swarmed in shallow water

Things that make you go Hmmm.

 

Roger

 

They certainly do eat berries, they are the only fish I can think of that regularly eat carbs. Maybe that’s why they get so big, like cows but in the water haha. I know some skilled carp guys that use sugar berry type baits and well as oatmeal. Ironically I caught a carp today! 

1 hour ago, TnRiver46 said:

They certainly do eat berries, they are the only fish I can think of that regularly eat carbs. Maybe that’s why they get so big, like cows but in the water haha. I know some skilled carp guys that use sugar berry type baits and well as oatmeal. Ironically I caught a carp today! 

 

I think you’ve got something there!

You’re now the 2^nd fellow to propose that possibility, so I’m going to accept that theory.

You’re right about their carbohydrate intake, proven by their love for cornmeal doughballs and corn niblets.

By the way, their average size was similar to the one you're holding.

Geez, only took 25 years to solve that mystery.     

 

Roger