Grass Carp

[kirisute]

As others have said,they are omnivores....however they feed just beneath the surface usually and chances are you will find them up against a reed bed or base of rat tails grabbing snails and larvae from the underwater stems/ roots etc.

Good method is a bubble float and very short hook length, maybe only a few inches, with slow sinking bread or soft halibut pellet. Keep it tight against feeding features an if you can swamp the area with semi sinking pellets and floaters.

If they are cruising you will find a slow sinking bait might produce well as they are more prone to feed just beneath the surface than sucking from it.

And be warned they fight like greased monkeys on **** on a leccy fence! A really fast, hard fight with plenty of twists and runs....not like most carp at all! My best is just under 10lb and it fought harder than carp twice it's size!

[Phone]

All,

 

Can't fight city hall. FishBase (my bible) says, """Feeds on higher aquatic plants and submerged grasses; takes also detritus, insects and other invertebrates.""""

 

I stand corrected.

 

Phone

[BoldBear]

Thanks for your very helpful replies,

 

I have also spoken to someone on another forum who said that his grandad used to catch a lot of them and that the best bait that he ever found for catching them was sugar puffs either on the surface or popped up above a shot near the bottom.

 

I think I will have a go at surface fishing for them in the evenings when the sun gets low and the heat gets less using pieces of breadflake and maybe some soft fruity floating baits like pieces of fruit flavoured 'boilie cake' which resists casting pressures better. I might even take some Sugar Puffs with me however I would probaby eat more than I use.

 

Thanks again for your help, I will do a report when I have had a go for them; hopefully sometime next week.

 

Thanks again

 

Keith (BoldBear)

Edited May 26, 2012 by BoldBear

[BoldBear]

I spent yesterday afternoon and evening trying to get one of these Grass Carp to take my floating bait (Floating flake) without any success and being an ex-trout fishery there was very little shade to sit under so I'm now starting to look a bit like a lobster.

I fished till it started getting dark and I still couldn't induce a take.

 

What made it worse was that I found out from another regular that at the last count the pool contains 19 grass grass carp which go up to 28lb and although one or two are occasionally hooked nobody has come up with a reliable strategy for targeting these fish on a regular basis - they are notoriously difficult! Any floating bait would be given a wide berth and the fish would melt away at the slightest disturbance.

 

But they look so tempting when they are all moving around together just beneath the surface and it was great fun trying to catch one anyway.

 

I'm looking forward to round 2 in a couple of weeks when I have thought out my next method of attack, lol.

Edited May 30, 2012 by BoldBear

[Anderoo]

If disturbance is an issue and they are wary of floating baits, perhaps a few strategically placed zigs is worth trying. They can then be left out in spots where you've seen the grassies moving and wait for them to come round again.

 

Sounds like a really interesting challenge, keep us updated!

[Dick Dastardly]

Any floating bait would be given a wide berth and the fish would melt away at the slightest disturbance.

 

I'm only guessing here (based on both dry fly fishing for trout and surface fishing for normal carp) but I wouldn't mind betting two things are probably the problem here.

 

First (if you are fishing a floating bait) will be the problem known to trout anglers as FNS (Floating Nylon Syndrome) basically as your hook length is floating on top of the surface film it will be casting a shadow.This often results with the fish (both trout and carp) going for the bait/fly but turning away at the last moment as the line throws a shadow over their eyes as the get close. Can be avoided by degreasing the line for the last foot or so so that it sits "in" rather than "on" the surface film.Can still cause problems with ultra wary fish though,but a way around this in a minute.

 

Next guess will also be that the size of bait you are using is to big.These fish will be used to feeding on natural items that are very small.To big a bait will just appear unnatural to them.I would use a size 10 hook at the most (a good modern size ten carp hook will be more than strong enough to land even the biggest of carp) and match the bait size accordingly.

 

For me the most logical answer to both of your problems would be to use "Zig Rigs" which can be set up to fish a bait just subsurface or even surface (most natural food is not on the actual surface but trapped in the surface film itself) without the line being on the surface. I allways (unless the water is shallower than 3-4') use an "Adjustable Zig Rig" anyway so you can cast out and adjust the depth the bait is at as you wish.Most carp spend far more time in the upper layers of the water than they do on the bottom and from my limited experience of Grassies they seem to even more so. If you dont know how to set up a simple Adjustable Zig Rig then let me know and I will do a quick diagram.

 

Most carp anglers stoped using "bait" on Zigs yonks ago instead preferring to use small bits of rig foam as this lasts longer and its buoyancy more predictable.Black and yellow are the favourites and once again kept very small. I stoped using foam some years ago (in fact many years ago when I still regularly carp fished!) and switched to what are now known as "Zig Bugs". Simply beefed up foam backed "Floating Beetle" trout fly patterns. Now "all the rage" and the "latest thing"!

 

PM me your address and I will send you a couple to try.

[Dick Dastardly]

If disturbance is an issue and they are wary of floating baits, perhaps a few strategically placed zigs is worth trying. They can then be left out in spots where you've seen the grassies moving and wait for them to come round again.

 

Sounds like a really interesting challenge, keep us updated!

 

 

Ah you snuck in while I was typing!

[kirisute]

how much feeding of the fish have you tried?

for instance will they touch maggots if they fall past their noses? not on the hook just loose fed?

ive had them in the past be shy of surface baits but slow dropping baits have worked well, free lined into their path they can sometimes be tempted to take on the drop.

dunno what the fishery rules are but also try some "normal" pond floating feed

its going to come down to gettign the fish used to feeding of seeing food presented in such a manner.

id be free lining for them for sure as they seem so spooky.

finally check the lake itself for classic locations for them to be feeding...follow dominatnt wind patterns to find the surface sludge at the lakes edges...if the trees are putting fluff on the water then try feeding the resulting debris field which the wind will create against the banks; if its been there awhile they will certainly be travelling there to feed on the trapped bugs etc that get blown along with it all.

[Anderoo]

Ah you snuck in while I was typing!

 

Too slow, boss

 

I reckon in situations like this, I'd definitely be looking to try small natural and/or immitative baits popped right up near the surface - a couple of maggots, a couple of casters, a little bouyant buzzer from the fly box - and fish them as single baits in strategic spots with no other feed. I'm really interested in this now, it's a fascinating conundrum!

[kirisute]

Too slow, boss

 

I reckon in situations like this, I'd definitely be looking to try small natural and/or immitative baits popped right up near the surface - a couple of maggots, a couple of casters, a little bouyant buzzer from the fly box - and fish them as single baits in strategic spots with no other feed. I'm really interested in this now, it's a fascinating conundrum!

maybe we should get there and give the old "passion for angling" scarecrow trick a try??