Fishing lures are a part of the essential equipment on a fishing day. These consist of artificial imitations of fish or prey necessary to attract our catches. How do we get the fish to bite? It will depend on the color of the lure, the shape or prey it imitates, the material and even the movement we give it to trick the fish.
What fishing lure to choose?
As we have mentioned before, fishing lures are imitations of prey, and together with the rod and reel, they are one of the most important elements when fishing. Having a box prepared with a variety of them will be very useful to us.
Traditionally people went fishing with bait, until at the end of the 19th century, the beginning of the 20th, fishermen designed the first lures, becoming a revolution in the world of fishing. Until today, these tools have been diversifying and improving to offer the fisherman and fisherwoman the best possible solution.
How do I know which fishing lure to choose? Well, it will depend on the type of fishing you are going to practice, the species to be caught or the area in which we are. The variety of existing lures does not help us to solve this question: There are infinite colors, materials, shapes, types, sizes… The most optimal thing is that we use a lure that is as similar as possible to the prey which the fish we want to catch feeds. There are also other issues to take into account when choosing the lure, such as casting distance, movement and deepening capacity (surface, mid-water and sunken).
Types of fishing lures
Now that you know what you have to know to choose the fishing lure, we are going to explain the main types of lures and when and how to use them.
Fishing lures: Jigs
Jigs are one of the most popular fishing lures. They are normally hard and metallic and are used in jigging or jig fishing. These mimic the movement of prey very well and can allow us to catch large fish. They have one hook and thanks to their weight they are suitable for bottom-feeding prey.
Hard lures
There are countless of these lures, whether top water, mid depth or bottom. These can be made of plastic, metal or wood and mimic their prey very well, both in shape and color. They are hard lures that usually have 2 or 3 hooks, they can also have a metal or plastic sheet on the front which is called a lip. Some examples are Minnows, Jerkbaits, or Crankbaits.
Crankbaits lures are widely used for fresh water, for fishing species such as black bass, zander, pike or perch. These faithfully imitate the prey of these predators, hence their effectiveness. In addition to being very durable, its offer is very varied, we will find an infinity of colors and sizes.
Soft plastic lures
Soft plastic are soft and flexible lures, made of plastic or silicone in a variety of colors that can be used in both fresh and salt water. They imitate many kinds of creatures such as fish, worms, crabs, frogs… These lures can also be accompanied by a lead head to add weight. If you want to know more about this type of lure and see the best recommendations, don’t miss this guide: Fishing with soft plastic. How to choose?
Fishing lures: Spoons
Its name tells us what this lure looks like. It is a curved and concave metal sheet, similar to a spoon, which makes wavy movements when collecting. These movements or turbulence resemble a wounded fish, so predators cannot resist biting the lure. It is a very typical lure for freshwater fishing in spinning modality.
Lures or exciters for trolling
These lures are used in trolling fishing, they were born in the United States and are V-shaped with several fins on their lead head. They imitate small fish preyed on by large marine predators such as bonitos, tunas or dolphinfish.
Spinnerbait lures
These lures are very varied but they have in common that they move horizontally in the water. They consist of a hook with skirts on one side, and on the other side one or more blades that function as a helix. These lures are very effective for fishing freshwater species such as Black Bass, pike and perch thanks to the vibrations and flashes that it emits with its sheets.
Squid Jigs or egis
This fishing lure is known by the names squid jigs or egis. They are used to catch cephalopods (squid, octopus, cuttlefish), that is, to practice eging fishing. It is made of plastic covered with cloth normally, and it imitates a fish or shrimp, food for squid and cuttlefish. It does not have a hook as such, but one or two steel barbed crowns where our catch will be hooked.
Fishing lures: Poppers
Poppers are lures that mimic injured or dying fish, making them very attractive to predators who think they can attack weak fish. They serve both fresh and salt water and are so useful thanks to their sound although you also have to know how to give them the right movement.
Fishing lures: Flies
They are traditionally fly fishing lures, they simply consist of a hook and a skirt. The materials used are feathers, threads and skins to make them look like insects, crustaceans or other prey. Its manufacture is usually handmade and difficult, considering it an art.
Articulated lures
They are characterized by being made of plastic and being divided into several parts, which gives them a very natural movement in the water. They are very effective and very realistic, hence their slightly higher price. There is a lot of variety and they are used in fresh water. We find for example the Swimbaits, lures suitable for fishing in continental fresh water, very successful and detailed.
Conclusions
As you have been able to verify there are countless fishing lures. Each fisherman will choose his own depending on the modality of fishing he practices, if it is in fresh or salt water, the species he wants to catch… But we can be even more specific, if you want to know which lure in particular works best for you with each species and for each modality in a specific area, and even which lure colors are the best, try WeFish FishLab.
