Maggots - dead or alive?

[Tigger]

Appart from having a load of maggots left which will not be used before they all change into casters I can't see any sense in freezing them/killing them.

The tackle shops go out of their way to sell fresh lively maggots for a reason.

Fish know when something is dead, and unless they are very hungry they will leave them.  Same thing happens woth worms. Only recently i've been going out in the garden after dark with the red head torch on collecting large worms for my piranha fish.  Once the worms have died the piranhas will not eat them.  Infact, if I just fed dead worms the piranhas would canabalise before going for old nackered worms!

[Peterjg]

Fish love eating casters and they don't move?

[Tigger]

1 hour ago, Peterjg said:

Fish love eating casters and they don't move?

But they arn't dead and decaying.

As soon as something dies it starts to decay, and maggots decay very quickly.

Edited December 4, 2021 by Tigger

[Peterjg]

Agreed, dead maggots when thawed do go off quite quickly  - but in the meantime they catch lots of fish.

[Tigger]

3 hours ago, Peterjg said:

Agreed, dead maggots when thawed do go off quite quickly  - but in the meantime they catch lots of fish.

 

Not a lot more I can say on the subject, so, good luck with your dead maggs Peterjg, i'll stick to lives .

[Martin56]

On 12/4/2021 at 7:07 AM, Peterjg said:

On these quiet waters the roach regard them as a natural bait and take them readily.  However; they definitely work better when flavoured.  Overall though my favourite bait is bread.

I have some out of date Angel Delight powder, (who remembers Instant Whip?) Strawberry, Chocolate & Banana flavour which I use to take the Ammonia smell off Live maggots & I also use it on the "Deads" which I dampen to make "Stickimags" so I can Ball them in which helps to concentrate them when loose feeding especially, down the edge.

[Martin56]

On 12/2/2021 at 3:28 PM, The Flying Tench said:

3. Storage and killing them. Do you just put a box of maggots in the freezer or ice box, or is it best to put them in a freezer bag? And once you've defrosted them can you freeze them again

Freezer bags are best because you can hide them under other stuff so the wife can't see 'em lol, & yes, you can refreeze them more or less as many times as you think is fit!!

(I've refroze them 3 or 4 times & they seem perfectly OK to me)

[chesters1]

When the tackle shop existed in aldershot i used to occasionaly splash out for a half pint of maggots .

They sat in the fridge occasionally i took a hand full out and went fishing but i never loose fed and the remainers came back home and were put back in .i just wonder the conversation the returnees had with the shivering occupants about their adventures of the day before the cold got to them and drifted off to sleep .

They last a !ong time in the fridge a new bed of sawdust when it gets damp but they slowly lose weight and fade away until the robin gets a feed

Edited December 6, 2021 by chesters1

[Peterjg]

Agreed, dead maggots when thawed do go off quite quickly  - but in the meantime they catch lots of fish.

 

!?  I've tried to add another post but the page has gone back to this previous post for some unknown reason??

As I previously posted, dead maggots do go off quite quickly so I only take any unused dead maggots for one more trip (refreeze).  I always flavour the dead maggots and I am sure this helps - maybe the flavour also masks any odours from the dead maggots as they deteriorate??  I have several of those plastic clippy boxes, half fill them with filtered water, add your flavour, add red maggots and immediately freeze.  Don't forget to give the box time to thaw prior to fishing.  An easy convenient bait - but bread is better.

 

Edited December 6, 2021 by Peterjg