Ways to store bloodworms at home
When planning your next fishing trip, you need to take care of a sufficient amount of high-quality bait in advance. Usually it is harvested in advance, so experienced fishermen know how to store bloodworms at home so that it stays alive for a long time. The size of the future catch largely depends on the quality of the bait.
Methods for storing bloodworms
The larvae of the mosquito-centipedes are one of the most popular live bait, and in winter - almost the only one. Usually this nozzle is stocked ahead of time, counting on several trips. Therefore, bloodworms acquired or mined on their own must be kept alive for several weeks.
To store bloodworms for a long time at home, it is necessary to take into account some features:
- Larvae die from their own secretions.
- They die from contact with dead individuals.
- Crank does not tolerate prolonged exposure to air, as well as exposure to sunlight.
Inventive anglers have come up with many different ways to store this bait.
- The mosquito larvae are perfectly stored in a nylon stocking suspended in the toilet flush cistern. There is always fresh, cold water, which, when draining, flushes out bloodworms. It remains to remove dead "worms" once every 2-3 days.
- It is very effective to keep this bait in a container (preferably flat) with water placed in the refrigerator. The bloodworm should be a thin layer at the bottom. Once a day, water should be changed. It should be the same temperature. This is very important, since heat stroke is deadly for bloodworms.
- You can store this live nozzle by wrapping it in a damp cotton or wool cloth and placing it in a cool place. The napkin should be washed daily in hot water, and then rinsed with cold. Larvae are placed on a damp cloth and wrapped.
- Instead of fabric, regular newspapers are often used. For these purposes, take three sheets - two dry and one wet. First, a dry leaf is laid, wet on it, a bloodworm on top with a thin layer (not more than 0.5 cm), and a dry leaf on top. Sheets can be rolled up or enveloped and placed in a cool place. The paper must be changed daily, while removing dead larvae.
- It is convenient to store bloodworms in a flat plastic, foam or wooden box (bloodworm). At the bottom it is necessary to lay a piece of foam rubber of small thickness, cut to the size of the box. A plate cut off from a sponge for washing dishes is quite suitable. Foam should be slightly moistened and spread bloodworms on top. Once a week, foam should be washed and moistened. The incinerator should be placed on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. In such conditions, it is possible to save bloodworms at home for a month without unnecessary trouble, and, without being filled with water, the bait becomes more durable and elastic.
- You can freeze the larvae. They should be distributed in small portions, since they will not be able to freeze and thaw several times. Frozen bloodworms are commonly used for bait supplements. Although it can also be used as a bait for a hook, but only immediately after thawing.
Original folk storage methods
- A fairly well-known method is storage in potatoes or cucumbers. The tuber should be cut in half and the middle removed, leaving the walls about a centimeter thick. Bloodworms must be laid in the cut-out cavities, join the halves and secure with a rubber ring. Store in a cool place. Potato should be washed daily.
- Perfectly stored bloodworm in a sleeping tea.Distribute the used tea leaves on a wet gauze cloth, sprinkle larvae on top, wrap and place in a cool place. But extracting bloodworms from this mass is quite difficult.
- Some anglers suggest storing bait between leaves of fresh cabbage. To do this, you need to lift two or three top sheets and between them, right in the head, lay a bloodworm, which then put in a cellar or other cool place. How to sort the larvae and how long they are stored is unknown, but the method is overhead, since the used cabbage will have to be thrown out.
Sorting bloodworms
If there are a small number of larvae in stock, then you can remove the dead manually, it will not take much time. It is more difficult if there are a lot of bloodworms. You need to sort it every one to two days, otherwise the bait will go bad very quickly.
To separate the dead larvae use a mesh. You can take a large sieve with a mesh of about 2 mm. Cat trays are very suitable for these purposes. Pour water into the pan so that it covers the net a little, then pour the entire supply of larvae onto the net. During the time when the bloodworm or other place of storage is put in order, all living larvae will crawl through the net and fall to the bottom of the pallet, and the dead will remain on the net.
If this procedure is carried out daily, and the incinerator is placed in the refrigerator, where the temperature is close to zero degrees, then this bait can be stored at home for several months.
Keeping a living bloodworm at home is troublesome. But then, going fishing (especially in winter), you don’t have to frantically run around the shops to find a good bait.