American Bait Minnows 



that are not small, which he recommends in the highest terms 

 to the inexperienced angler. 



But many anglers, either by preference or from necessity, 

 collect their own bait minnows, and this custom has much to 

 recommend it ; for one can usually secure better minnows. He 

 i'an make his own selections as to species and size, his minnows 

 will be fresher and more vigorous than those from the Saprolegnia- 

 infested live-box, and, moreover, he who collects his own min- 

 nows learns much about their habits and much of nature, which 

 will be no disadvantage to any man. 



The best and most satisfactory manner of collecting minnows 

 for bait is by means of the Baird collecting seine. These seines 

 can be had of any desired length from H. & G. W. Lord, Boston, 

 but the angler, will of course, keep within the lawful limit of 

 minnow seines. The peculiarity of the Baird seine is that the 

 middle portion is made with finer mesh than the ends and is 

 made into a bag 2 or 3 feet in length. Seines without the bag, 

 but with the finer mesh in the bunt may be had. 



Various other kinds of nets are used, with varying success, 

 but a Baird seine 15 to 25 feet long will prove most satisfactory. 



Minnows suitable for live bait can be found in almost any 

 stream or lake that has not been overfished or whose waters are 

 not polluted or made unsuitable for fish by milling, mining, logging 

 or sewage operations. Different species will be found in different 

 streams, some preferring those with colder water, rocky bottom, 

 and swiftly-flowing current, while others have chosen the streams 

 whose waters flow more slowly and are warmer, and whose 

 bottom is of mud or sand or fine gravel. And in the same 

 stream different species will seek out different parts; some prefer 

 the quiet reaches, some the patches of aquatic vegetation, while 

 others delight to dwell in the shallows of the riffles upon the 

 gravel-bars where the water flows swiftly and is well aerated. 

 A similar distribution of species will be noticed in the lakes 

 and ponds. 



Generally speaking, the species of minnows will be most 

 numerous and individuals most abundant in the warmer streams 

 and lakes. 



In the experience of many anglers, creek or river minnows 

 are preferable to those from lakes or ponds, particularly if one is 

 fishing for black bass or wall-eyed pike. The best bait species 



XXXVIII 



