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Fishing for zander: all about gear, habitat and suitable baits
One of the most coveted trophies of many fishermen, especially fans of spinning and trolling fishing. The fish is well acclimatized, therefore it is familiar not only in the regions of natural habitation, but also in artificial reservoirs, such as ponds and reservoirs. The fish is aggressive and voracious, which pleases anglers. Pike perch can reach a length of more than a meter and a weight of 18 kg.
Ways to catch zander
Fishing for pike perch is very popular, so fishermen have come up with a lot of fishing methods. When fishing with natural lures, it can be live bait fishing or pieces of meat. To do this, you can use both various rods and vents, “suppliers” or mugs. Pike perch are caught on artificial baits with familiar, traditional equipment and specially designed for it. On larger bodies of water, many anglers practice fishing from boats, “adrift” or at anchor. No less popular is trolling fishing on reservoirs, large rivers and lakes, including catching pike perch in the brackish waters of sea bays at river mouths. No less exciting is fishing from the shore. In winter, in some regions, zander fishing is a special tradition and a specialized type of fishing. Ice fishing is carried out both with the help of traditional mormyshkas and spinners, as well as with specialized lures and gear.
Fishing for pike perch on bottom gear
Fishing pike perch on bottom gear is very effective in pits and places with difficult currents. Donks are used both when fishing from the shore and from boats. When fishing from small boats, it is more convenient to use various side rods, which can be very simple. On small rivers, they fish from the shore, using traditional tackle, often converted spinning rods with equipment for live bait tackle. It is worth noting that in some reservoirs, instead of live bait, pike perch is perfectly caught on pieces of fish meat. Sometimes this bait is considered more effective for catching large fish.
Catching zander spinning
Pike perch, along with pike, is at the top of the “food” pyramid in almost all reservoirs. For fishing, a huge number of spinning lures have been invented. The main criterion for choosing a rod in modern spinning fishing is the choice of fishing method: jig, twitching, and so on. The length, action, and test is chosen according to the fishing location, personal preference and the bait used. Do not forget that rods with a “medium” or “medium-fast” action “forgive” much more angler’s mistakes than “fast” action. It is advisable to purchase reels and cords corresponding to the selected rod. Pike perch biting on spinning lures often looks like mild “poking”, so many anglers advise using only cords. Due to the weak extensibility, the cord better “transmits” careful bites of fish. In general, when catching zander, various “jigging” fishing techniques and appropriate baits are more often used.
Catching zander with various tackle
In the summer, pike perch can be successfully caught on live bait using float rods. Pike perch, along with perch and pike, are actively caught on various types of setting gear, also using baits from live bait and pieces of meat. It can be various zherlitsy, “circles”, leashes and so on. Of these, the most exciting and exciting, justifiably, is considered to be fishing “on circles.” These methods can be used both in stagnant water bodies and in slow-flowing, large rivers. Fishing is very active. Several gears are installed on the surface of the reservoir, for which you need to constantly monitor and change live bait. Fans of such fishing use a lot of devices for storing nozzles and gear. For example, we can mention special cans or buckets with water aerators to keep the live bait as long as possible. Large zander, like perch and pike, are caught by trolling. Pike perch actively reacts to fly fishing lures. For fishing, traditional fly fishing tackle is used for catching medium-sized fish. These are single-handed rods of medium and large classes, switches and light two-handed rods. For fishing, you will need fairly large, sailing or heavy lures, and therefore cords with short “heads” are suitable for casting. In winter, pike perch are caught quite actively. The main method of fishing is sheer lure. Traditional lure, in many cases, is carried out with the replanting of small fish or a piece of meat.
Baits
For winter fishing, a large number of specialized spinners are used. There are quite a lot of home-made options that can amaze with their “originality” those who are ignorant of fishing. Currently, baits are actively used, from manufacturers of balancers and winter wobblers. In the summer, many anglers use baits designed specifically for catching zander: these are foam rubber and polyurethane fish; weighted streamers; multi-component baits made from tinsel and cambric; spinners made of metal tubes and so on. The main baits for zander have proven themselves to be various jig nozzles and equipment for them. Some species are quite large, and therefore can be supplied with additional leashes and hooks. Currently, most of these baits are made of silicone. Wobblers are also quite often used baits. The choice can be quite varied. Some lovers of zander fishing believe that wobblers are twilight and night lures. For fly fishing, large, voluminous streamers are used, in the case of fishing in pits, they are heavily loaded, with the use of rapidly sinking undergrowth.
Places of fishing and habitat
The natural habitat of pike perch is relatively small, in the rivers and lakes of Europe, but due to the fact that the fish is well acclimatized, it was settled in a large area, both in warm regions and in Western and Eastern Siberia. Pike perch, mostly crepuscular, actively feeding predator. It forms semi-anadromous forms that feed in desalinated sea waters. In rivers and lakes, it often leads a flock of life, feeding in shallow water or near the shore edge, the rest of the time it is in the deep parts and behind obstacles in the “cluttered” parts of the reservoir.
Spawning
The maturation of fish can take up to 7 years in the northern regions, but usually it occurs at 3-4 years. Spawning takes place in April – June. Caviar is deposited on the sandy bottom in nests made by males, quite heaped. Fish guard their offspring and aerate the water near the nest with the help of fins.