SHRIMP

[sportskiff]

Who shrimps off their skiff, and what ya got that makes shrimpin better???
I KNOW ya'll castnetters got sumpthin ta say, put it here, I MIGHT even put my BEST bait ball reciepie here, if enough of ya'll post!!!!!!!!!! (now who ya'll know that will share a bait ball reciepie??????)
Reggie

[sportskiff]

oh yea, trim tab probbably got a good bait-ball reciepie, HOPEFULLY he'll hold it fer a bit, get ya'll ta post!!!!! (hint-hint ;) there Trim)
Reggie

[Slim to None]

not sure if i'm thinking of the right bait ball, but down in the keys when we are snapper fishing we sometimes take play ground sand and fill a 5 gallon bucket with it. add a can of either menhaden oil and an oily cat food and chunks of fresh bait fish. put a piece of bait on a bare hook and pack a fist full of "sand" on your hook. wrap the line about a dozen times around the ball and throw it in. as your line sinks the sand will chum up the fish.

[Slim to None]

oh yeah, as far as shrimping... i dont have any boat mods that help, just our net. my brother has an 8' cast net that he taped duct tape along the bottom just above the weights to help it sink slower. this will give it more time to stay open and trap more shrimp.

[Trim-Tab]

Shrimp? Off a Skiff?

We dip net them as they swim by fer bait.


I used ta shimp OOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLDDDDDD School and wade with a light on my head and a dip net in the grass. light hits em and their eyes glow red.

I've also baited them up near the sawgrass around a buddy's dock and castnetted them...

I've got a few mixes I haven't used though. never got around to any really hardcore shrimping.

[Slim to None]

we shrimp over in the st. johns river. they come way up river during certain times of the year. as fun as it is, i've never really gotten into like my brother is.

[yellowdog]

I've heard of cast netting for shrimp. How exactly do you do it? Sounds like you chum them up and then throw the net? We've done the wading at nite with light on our heads and dip netted them on the grass flats, but would like to try the cast netting. Anybody willing to share the do's and don'ts? Thanks in advance for any advice.

[Shakespeare]

Yellowdog, you're in NC, right? If so, the standard recreational saltwater fishing license allows you to possess 100 shrimp a day. You can purchase a provisional license for recreational harvesting of shrimp if you require more than the allotted 100. There are areas that are prohibited from shrimping, shellfish harvesting, etc., so you need to be aware about those locations. You also need to be aware of your prey's migration habits as shrimp typically migrate out to sea during the fall and return back in the spring although I've read contradictory information about a certain species that come inland during the winter. It's helpful to have a little local info as to where the shrimps hang out because during the day you'll be "blind casting" for them as they're hard to see. There are shrimp specific casting nets that generally have a 1/2" mesh, but most of us just use our 3/8" mesh since shrimp catching is just an occasional activity. The NCDMF has a shrimp specialist that keeps up mostly with the commercial harvesting but they are happy to provide general information if you wish to email them.

See; http://www.ncfisheries.net/shellfish/shrimp2.htm

And; http://www.ncfisheries.net/content/cont1/contactdmf.htm

And; http://www.ncfisheries.net/maps/index.htm

As far as baitballing, someone else will have to chime in about that technique.

Mike C.

PS: I've heard that if you (quietly) draft your boat towards a marsh or bank for example, that the shrimp will emit a clicking noise in response to feeling threatened. That's one way of detecting their presence in the daytime. I personally haven't experienced that phenomenon.

[TooTall]

Years ago I heard of a guy catching shrimp in a trap in Core Sound