Softbaits – why matching the hatch is important

Size, colour and pattern are as important for the soft-bait fisher as they are for anyone who uses artificial baits (lures, flies etc.).

While snapper is the primary focus for soft-bait fishers in New Zealand, trout are also very partial to soft baits (Gulp) and their use is growing, particularly in the South of New Zealand. Snapper are perhaps less selective than, say, tuna or trout, at times they focus on particular food sources to the exclusion of everything else. The angler’s challenge is then to find something in his tackle arsenal that matches what the fish are eating on the day, at least closely enough to trigger a bite.

Fortunately for us, snapper are opportunistic feeders that eat almost any animal food they can get their teeth into. That’s good news for anglers who can catch them on a wide variety of baits and lures. But when they are focussed on a particular type of food – squid, perhaps, or pilchards, or shellfish – presenting lures that imitate the food source is important.

A good example is when school snapper are feeding on pilchards and anchovies in work-up situations. To do well, anglers need to use soft baits that are a similar size, shape (and less importantly) colour to the small baitfish snapper are keyed-in to eating.

Size and colour

For soft-baiters, choosing lures of the right size and colour is one of the keys to a successful day’s snapper fishing. And bear in mind that what works in the morning may not work in the afternoon, or when the tide turns… or if the sun goes behind a cloud. It’s always a good tactic to experiment with different sizes and colours (and patterns) until fish start biting, and be prepared to change baits as the conditions change. If fish stop biting, change your soft baits until you start catching again – the fish may have simply gone off the bite, but there’s always a chance they’ve switched to a different food source and you’ll need to present them with something else to get a bite.

In general, size is more important than colour in my opinion, although I often feel that changing colours can help get the attention of lazy fish. That’s also my argument for using some of the more outlandish-looking soft baits like lizards and Berkley Gulp! Squid Vicious shapes. Snapper are curious and the only way they can check something out is by biting it. Lizards and similar ‘creature’ baits have lots of wriggly bits and snapper have a hard time ignoring them, even though there are no real lizards swimming around the bottom of the sea in 15m of water.

There are definitely times when small baits – 8-10cm (3-4-inch) – will pull bites when larger models won’t, even if they are the same colour and style. When the fishing is slow, try using smaller baits four-inch (10mm) jigging grubs or three-inch (7.6mm) minnows on smaller jig-heads and consider lighter fluorocarbon traces as well – finicky fish are hard to fool and there are times when subtlety in presentation is required.

Many soft bait anglers maintain that brightly coloured baits are the way to go on bright, sunny days, while darker baits are more successful on dull, overcast days.
I can’t honestly say that I’ve noticed much difference, and like many soft bait fishers, I tend to stick with a couple of favourite lures for most of my fishing, changing only if success eludes me.

As a result, I catch most of my fish on a two or three patterns and colours – five-inch jerk shads in silver-grey (Gulp! Sapphire Shine), watermelon, brown or red/green (Nuclear Chicken). Their success is self-fulfilling. I use those lures most of the time, so they catch the most fish, not least because you can only catch fish when your lure is in the water: you don’t catch any while working through your tackle box tying on different patterns.

I’ve always been keener on natural, life-like colours than more garish ones, but there’s no denying that using a completely off-the-wall colour or style soft bait sometimes results in hot fishing. Perhaps the oddball lure stands out amongst the crowd of naturals, making it too hard to resist. Luminescent baits have their place, too, especially in low light conditions, deep water and when the water is discoloured after stormy weather or heavy rain.

On occasions I’ve enjoyed exceptional success fishing with large, brightly coloured soft baits like Gulp! Lime Tiger or Pink Shine in shallow water amongst the rocks, kelp forests and wash. These baits are more visible amongst the foam, white water and waving kelp than smaller natural-coloured baits and seem to draw snapper from considerable distances. Good as they are, however, I’ve found natural coloured baits – silvers, blues, whites, browns and greens – are more consistent and are normally my first choice for most soft-bait fishing. When the water’s clear, visibility is good, so snapper can see the lures from a fair way off.

They are also more discerning and may reject anything that’s too garish or unnatural, but there are always exceptions, so don’t be afraid to experiment, especially when your favourites are not producing results.

The importance of action/movement

I’ve already noted how effective baits like lizards can be, largely due to their wiggly extremities that move around with minimal input from the angler. Indeed, for many of these baits, plus other highly effective patterns like Gulp! Crazy Legs, a sort of hybrid jerk shad with an extended, highly mobile forked tail, and Berkley’s new Squid Vicious, which to my eyes looks more like a frog than a squid but works brilliantly all the same, too much input/action from the angler is counter productive. Unlike jerk shads and swim baits, soft baits with highly mobile parts should be worked more slowly with subtle rod movements.

In some instances, using slightly less weight than you might with a conventional jerk shad is a good ploy. This ensures that the lure’s wavy bits waft around enticingly, both as the bait sinks, and in response to the slightest of rod movements.

In contrast, long, slender jerk shads with a vee in their tails work best when given plenty of action through the rod. Jerk shads have slim profiles so they sink quicker than baits with bulkier profiles. But it depends on the mood of the fish – sometimes they respond to harder jerks/more speed/more weight, while at other times a more subtle approach is better. Jerk shads get their name from the way the lures are worked – one or more sharp jerks followed by a pause so the bait flutters down again. It’s an action that imitates a wounded or dying bait very well. Don’t overdo it, however, especially when the water’s shallow: a couple of sharp jerks/lifts just before or immediately after the soft bait has touched the bottom will often elicit a strike.

Some people are too enthusiastic with their rod movements – there’s no need to rip the rod skywards – a few simple lifts or even wrist flicks are all that’s required to move the bait and often more subtle movements are more effective than exaggerated ones. I favour relatively small, subtle rod movements, interspersed with the occasional harder jerk for a bit of variety. I pay particular attention to the lure as it falls after each jerk or series of rod movements, since most bites come as the lure is descending. You need to be alert to any movement in the line that may indicate a fish has picked up the bait.

Using scented baits gives you a little more leeway, since snapper hold onto them for longer, and often come back if you miss the bite the first time. How long fish hold a soft bait in their mouths is something Berkley Gulp! scientists spent years and millions of dollars researching, in the process developing the Gulp! and Gulp! Alive formulas to increase the length of time fish hold onto soft baits. Even so, you’ll need to be alert because bites are not always savage and many fish are missed because angler either never even detect the bite or are too slow to react.