Fishing The Lowly Leech

Leeches are favorite baits for most anglers specifically because there is a variety of fish that dines solely on them – the walleyes. Fortunately, fishing with leeches have never been a problem since leeches are numerous and available in every rivers, lakes and creeks.
The ribbon leech is the one commonly used as a fishing bait. Its color ranges in hues from light brown to deep black. Some anglers also find tiger leeches as effective pan fish baits. The horse leeches however, repel fish, either due to its scent or because it lacks the interesting movement of other bait leeches.
As opposed to a minnow, a leech is more flexible to be kept as fish bait because it is not very sensitive to sudden temperature changes. The leech can be kept for a longer period time even without any food available for its consumption. However, leeches develop some kind of a body slime that needs to be cleaned. Self-cleaning is done by burrowing themselves under the sand in ponds or streams.
During summertime, most of the adult leeches undergo the natural cycle of dying off after depositing their cocoons. It is for this reason that this period is the best time to go fishing with leeches as the fishes are competing to have them due to the limited supply. It would be very easy to get the fishes’ attention during this season. In addition, leeches also tend to perform by wiggling a lot during summer.
Leeches may be slimy things, but they sure can bring gigantic walleyes and help one lucky angler make the most of summertime fishing.