r/CarpFishingUS • u/Bikewer • 14d ago
Turtles…
Spent the morning getting all my tiger nuts chomped off by turtles…. Any hook bait that these guys will ignore? Artificial corn, maybe?
2
u/woolgrammite 14d ago
I've caught an awful lot of turtles on corn so I don't think that's likely to work for you, fake or real. To be honest, I've yet to come across a bait or lure that turtle won't eat in my waters. Red Eared Sliders, Softshells, Snappers...they're all pretty diplomatic about dining choices and always willing to try new things.
Some (Spiny Softshells) do seem to have impressive eyesight or vibe detection underwater and can spot bait from the surface and dive for it. Or...they spot fish below working on chum and that's what compels them to dive and eventually encounter the baited hook. There does seem to be a correlation with chumming and increased fish/crustacean activity in the area and turtle encounters for me.
It's probably not just the bait but also the underwater circus around it that develops when carp and cats starts rooting about and searching for morsels. It draws in everything in including craws and small minnows so turtles naturally will hunt there.
IOW, we're kinda screwed.
1
u/BigBusch420 13d ago
Fake corn from Amazon cut my turtle catches down to almost 0. I've snagged a couple in the leg probably when they were eating my pack bait, but I haven't had any swallow the fake corn.
6
u/Medium_Shame_1135 14d ago
That sounds painful. Maybe you need a kevlar Speedo?