Catching rudd using a spinning rod: tackle, bait and technique

Design features of the form

The first thing that catches your eye when comparing the two types of rods is the type of reel mount.
In the area of the handle there is a certain “trigger” - a special protrusion for reliable fixation of the multiplier and ease of control. Casting rods came into fashion when the proliferation of baitcasting products reached its peak. At first, reels that were convenient in every sense were installed on ordinary spinning rods, but their type of fastening needed to be improved. Thanks to the potential of multipliers and mass use, today many manufacturer lines have two versions of the same model: classic and casting. The spinning set is used in a special way, turning the rod upside down. This arrangement is dictated by the structure of the reels; it allows you to control the wiring and line tension with your fingertips. Thus, many bites are felt directly in the hand, which makes fishing more fun.

Particular attention is paid to rings; they must meet several standards:

Specific width. Narrow guides negatively affect casting, shortening the line by several meters. Also, narrow rings are not suitable for fishing in subzero temperatures; they quickly become subject to icing. A small tulip is an additional obstacle to the knots that secure the leash and the main line. Smooth insert. Often there is a defect when attaching rings, which relates to their correct location. Even a tiny deviation of a few degrees will unbalance the rod, significantly reduce casting distance and increase the risk of breakage when fighting large fish. Availability of bushings. Titanium guides have a sharp edge that quickly breaks the line along its entire length, which is why fishing product manufacturers use soft plastic sleeves. If you get your hands on a rod with open guides, then it’s better to refrain from buying it. High quality legs. The so-called legs are involved in fastening the rings

There can be up to three of them, which is very important for casting spinning rods. Since the rod is positioned with the rings facing up, you need to select gear with the most reliable fastening of the rings. No chips

Improper transportation or manufacturing defects affect the quality and appearance of the gear. When purchasing, you should carefully inspect each ring.

Read: Fishing rods: types and features of choice

It is best to carry the rod in a tube, separate from the reel. The soft inner insert will prevent cracks in the blank or guides, increasing the service life of the rod.

The handle can be either figured or monolithic. The percentage of fishing rods with balsa wood handles is decreasing every year, giving way to new polymer materials.

What to use to catch rudd in winter?

Bait for rudd can be of either animal or plant origin. Like some other fish, the rudd very actively grabs everything that is on the hook, so you don’t have to worry that it will knock off, for example, dough from the tackle.

For a more successful catch, you can try using different baits, checking which one the fish bites on more actively. If only small individuals begin to be caught, then it is worth increasing the size of what is on the hook.

These include:

The larva of the apple moth, obtained from spoiled fruits. The sweetness of this insect attracts fish well. It should be stored in a wooden box next to several pieces of apple.
Bark beetle larvae.
The dough will also be good at luring rudd. It is worth remembering that during cooking you should not add a lot of flavors, as some of them can be off-putting.
A good option during winter fishing is gluten made from semolina. The consistency of the food should be such that it holds well on the hook.

To feed the fish, you can use a wide variety of options, which may include both specially developed mixtures and simple bread crumbs, occasionally thrown into the hole. To attract rudd, some raise silt and other particles present at the bottom.

In this turbidity, the fisherman begins to look for food, and as a result, many individuals accumulate in one place. A simple and proven way to attract is to use plant mixtures that you prepare yourself.

The peculiarity of summer fishing is the use of light baits, because during the heat, rudd rises to the very surface of the water and is accustomed to insects falling from time to time.

In order for the bait to slowly sink into the pond, you need to adjust the fishing rod.

If we are talking about the float version, then a sinker is used, installed close to the float. Because of this, a gradual lowering of the feed occurs.

What to use to catch rudd in June?

In June, after spawning, in all reservoirs where this type of fish is found, a good bite is observed, which depends little on the bait used.

It is worth noting that in some reservoirs it bites on a certain bait, while in others it completely refuses. Because of this, it's worth stocking up on several options and trying them all.

What to use to catch rudd in August?

If you follow all the suggested recommendations and try to experiment while searching for bait, lures, and the most suitable places, then a good catch will be guaranteed.

And here's what you need to know: Fishing with a cicada spinner - choice of gear and fishing technique

I will briefly list the main parameters of a promising fishing area:

the presence of the “right grass”. Mostly pondweed and holly;
in the place of fishing there should be a weak but stable current, which enriches the water with oxygen and carries food for the fish;
depths up to 3 m. The lower limit is practically unimportant - of course, within reasonable limits. In practice, I managed to find places with a depth of about 40 cm, densely overgrown with grass, where large rudd stayed from the beginning of June until the end of September;
proximity of grass to great depths or dumps. This is where the trophy rudd “falls” when the conditions listed above are unfavorable.

It would seem that there are plenty of places that satisfy these requirements; but everything is far from being as simple as it seems. In my practice, there were many cases when in a promising area, where it seemed there should be good fish, small rudd, chub and other fish of not outstanding size were caught.

The fact is that in the grass, similar to pondweed (unfortunately, I don’t know its exact name), growing in such places, there is not an abundance of insects living on algae, to which large rudd is accustomed.

And closer to August, when the water begins to bloom, this grass, covering a large area of water with thick greenery, emits a rather pungent and unpleasant odor. Such places should be avoided when fishing for rudd using a spinning rod.

A promising-looking point can be occupied by a small chub, adjacent only to asp and perch, but not to seasoned rudd.

Fishing technique and tactics

Before making the first casts, you need to get to the selected fishing area, since most rudd fishing with a spinning rod is carried out while standing in the water. Only where the depth does not allow for convenient casting and retrieving is it worth using a boat.

Read! Catching large pike perch

It is necessary to approach the place strictly against the current, because in the grass the fish stands with its head against the current, in this position it is convenient for it to collect floating food. It is necessary to maintain complete silence, move very carefully and quietly in the water, without creating unnecessary noise and without raising a lot of turbidity from the bottom. The slightest “window” among the grass is of interest to the angler. Even if its dimensions are so small that even 2-3 m of wiring is impossible, you should not leave this place without attention. You should carefully and accurately throw a small, noisy floating crank there and, using pulsating movements of the tip of the spinning rod, imitate a beetle or other insect that has fallen into the water. It is enough just to make a little fuss on the surface, and a lightning-fast bite may follow.

Wiring consists of uniformly slow winding with accelerations and decelerations, accompanied by slight tweaking. Stop&go wiring is also relevant, sometimes it makes the fish bite. Too intrusive and chaotic twitching usually does not bring the desired result.

Catching rudd with ultralight

The rudd is different in that it can be found in any water horizon.
It can feel quite comfortable at great depths near the very bottom, in the water column, and almost at the very surface of the reservoir. The rudd is mainly found in shallow water and at depths of up to three meters. In order to catch this desired prey, it is necessary to use different types of bait. A fisherman learns all the features of catching rudd on an ultralight only in practice. But do not forget that rudd likes to hide near algae, and therefore you can catch it not only from the shore, but also from a boat. By the way, don’t forget to take special gear for detaching the bait from aquatic vegetation. It is best to catch rudd in the summer, when the bite continues throughout the daylight hours.

Another feature of catching rudd with ultralight is the ability to use several types of bait. This includes silicone baits, spinners, wobblers. They are small in size, so they are perfect for catching this type of fish.

Ultralight, unlike a conventional spinning rod, is designed for fishing in small bodies of water, where, accordingly, you will not catch very large prey. Therefore, it is obvious that you should not use bulky tackle for catching small fish like rudd. Do not forget that ordinary devices, that is, fishing line, hooks, reels, are not suitable for ultralight, so you need to select everything in accordance with the gear you choose.

Despite the interest of fishermen in rudd, this species of fish has no commercial value. All because of the specific taste of its meat. In nature, rudd usually grows up to 24 cm and weighs 400 grams. However, sometimes there are specimens weighing almost one and a half kilograms. During the spawning period, rudd can reach a weight of 800 grams and change color to a brighter one.

What is ultralight? It's simple, this is a type of ultra-light spinning rod. Used for small reservoirs and small rivers. It consists of a small spinning reel, monofilament fishing line with a diameter of up to 0.14 millimeters, and a lightweight rod. The latter, in turn, comes in the following types: super light rods with a test weight of 5 to 6 grams, and more powerful ones with a test weight of 10 to 12 grams. Reels for ultralights are super light, and fishing lines are selected depending on the weight of the bait.

Spinning rod equipment for catching rudd

We will need an ultralight 1.8-2 meters long with a dough of up to 6 grams. This is a classic parabolic, which is comfortable for fishing at short distances up to 30 meters. Fishing with such a rod is a great pleasure. Rudd is quite a fast fish. During fishing, it provides a certain resistance, and the spinning rod will bend along its entire length.

On the spinning rod we will put a light reel with a front drag with a spool capacity of 1500. The spool can have either a line with a cross-section of 0.2 mm or braid with a diameter of 0.1 mm. A breaking load of 3 kg is more than enough. Often near the shore there may be poplar fluff or grass on the surface of the water. All these troubles fall on the fence, then the tulip gets clogged on the rod. The fishing line passes such obstacles better, and fluff does not accumulate in such quantities as on the fence. In any case, on such fishing you should have two spools. We wind a fishing line on one, and a braid on the other. We do not use leashes when fishing for rudd.

To catch rudd among underwater vegetation, a split-shot rig is often used. It looks like this:

A Cheburashka weight is taken and tied to the main fishing line. A fluorocarbon leash with a cross section of 0.22 mm and with a bait at the end is tied to the second end. Usually floating silicone or foam fish are used. During retrieving, the load goes along the bottom, and the bait floats above it. The length of the leader determines the distance between the bait and the bottom. It happens that the rudd stands in the lower horizon. In this case, short leashes 15-30 cm long are used. If the fish is kept in the middle and upper layers, then leashes 30-80 cm long are used.

How does rudd reproduce?

In early spring, before spawning begins, the fish actively feeds, gaining strength. Spawning time for rudd begins when the water warms up to 16-20 degrees. Usually in the south this happens in April, in the central Russian regions - in May, spawning ends at the end of June. It involves individuals aged over 3 years and under 5 years. Female rudd begin to spawn on the stems and roots of aquatic plants in shallow water, to which the eggs easily stick. Moreover, fish eggs do not lay all at once, but in certain portions.

In total, the females of this fish ripen three portions of caviar, and all of them have a different color. One portion of caviar is creamy, almost white, the other is yellowish, and the most mature caviar is bright yellow. Just one female can sweep from several thousand to more than 200 thousand small eggs, their diameter no more than one or one and a half millimeters. Males fertilize the eggs.

Spawning in rudd occurs quietly, without splashes and noise, like other fish. The incubation period continues for three days, then fish larvae hatch, the length of which barely reaches 5 mm.

It often happens that males do not participate in spawning, and the laid eggs simply die. As well as many fish larvae die, as well as already fertilized eggs that have fallen into the silt or dried up in the shallows.

Grown-up fry gather in schools and stay on the surface of the water, illuminated by the sun's rays, among aquatic plants. The fry grow quite quickly, feeding on zooplankton. For the winter, young fish go into reed thickets and find refuge there until the weather warms up.

Dangerous Enemies

The rudd is hunted by predatory fish. It is often prey for pike, asp, pike perch and catfish. Rudd fry are often eaten by perches, and larvae are eaten by fish of various species.

Rudds that like to stay near the surface of the water are often grabbed by water birds, especially herons. They are actively caught by the great grebe, which is also called the great grebe. Schools of juvenile fish suffer from the attack of a bright small bird, the kingfisher.

A fox hunts fish scurrying near the shore. And other animals, especially fast-swimming muskrats and otters, often feast on rudd.

More than others, the rudd population is being reduced by people, catching this numerous fish from reservoirs. To do this, fishermen choose quiet places heavily overgrown with aquatic vegetation, especially where there are a lot of water lilies, reeds, and reeds. Rudds bite well in areas of water available among plants and snags. They do not like wide open water spaces.

This cautious fish is caught using a float rod, with a long rod, up to 6 meters, and often without a sinker. They fish with a reel, and in places with dense aquatic thickets - in a plumb line and without a float, using a jig

In this case, a rubber shock absorber is installed on the rod. The floats are lightweight and the line is very strong.

Sometimes spinning rods with a two-meter long rod are used, using rotating spoons. If donka is used, it is only superficial due to the abundance of aquatic vegetation.

As bait for catching rudd, they take bran, steamed wheat, peas, millet, barley, corn grains, crackers, and macadamia. Pieces, grasshoppers, worms, and flies are added to them. Mixtures are often prepared from these components, adding sweet and strong-smelling elements such as halva, cookies, fruit jelly and even honey. Spices such as coriander or cinnamon are also used. Fish are often fed using a feeder.

The best bait for catching rudd are considered to be worms, bloodworms, maggots, and fly larvae. Among plant baits, fish take pearl barley, hominy, bread balls, peas, dough, and corn well. Rudd also responds well to artificial baits, most often to wobblers, various moving spoons, imitations of bloodworms, and maggots.

Rudd bites during daylight hours, especially well in the morning and at dawn, and they catch it throughout the year; in winter, catching it under the ice can also be successful.

Population and species status

In the northern regions of Russia, rudd is not found at all. Its northernmost populations live in Ladoga and Lake Onega. The further south a Russian region is located, the more of this fish is found in its reservoirs. Its especially numerous populations can be found in the Kuban, in the Volga basin.

In general, the number of this very cautious fish is quite large everywhere. Rudd gets along well in reservoirs with other cyprinids - crucian carp, bream, tench

It is not a competitor for them in search of food. Often schools of these different species of fish will hang around in a friendly manner.

Fishing for rudd on a float rod

This is the most common fishing method among anglers. In the current, a Bolognese rod with a length of 5 to 7 m is used, it is light, since the bites of rudd are quite frequent, which is why the rod will always be in your hands, when fishing with a long cast, a match about 4 m long. If fishing for rudd takes place in windows of clean water, among thickets of algae and water lilies, it is better to choose a fast-action fly rod ; with such a rod it is easier to control the fish when fishing and not allow it to go into the reeds or algae, where it will tangle the tackle. The length of the fishing rod will depend on the fishing range; this fishing rod should also have a reinforced tip, which will make it possible to use more delicate gear.

The fishing line used is 0.14-0.18 mm with leads 0.12-0.16 mm thick. In general, when fishing for rudd, you should consider the possibility of catching other large fish. For a high-quality signal about a bite, the float should not be large. Rudd does not like rough gear, so you should not load it with carabiners, swivels or bulky loops. The depth of release of the bait depends on the weather and time of day, the rudd can be at half-water, on the surface, occasionally at the bottom, so you need to constantly try.

Why is bream caught on spinning baits?

Many species of fish that lead a peaceful lifestyle in their youth, having reached large sizes, begin to feed on fry. Bream is no exception, although most anglers find it hard to believe. After all, after opening the abdominal cavity, no fragments of small fish are found in the stomach. The fact is that before swallowing food, the bream carefully grinds it with its pharyngeal teeth. Therefore, a kind of porridge from ground fish meat already ends up in the stomach.

Bream does not always hunt for small things; it feeds most actively on live fish during the period when the fry is growing. Depending on water temperature and region, the bite may begin in June or July.

This is interesting! Fans of spinning bream fishing have noticed that artificial baits catch only healthy specimens without parasites. Although in the same area of the reservoir, individuals infected with the Ligulidae are also caught on a feeder or float.

Thus, we can definitely say that targeted fishing for bream using spinning tackle can bring good results.

Features of choosing bait and bait for rudd

Depending on the season, the following baits and baits should be used:

For fishing in winter it is best to use:
Amphipods (their larvae or young individuals).
Caddisfly larvae (used when the rudd bite is very weak and needs to be activated).
Bloodworm (is one of the best baits for catching rudd in winter).
Maggot (place several larvae on the hook at a time);
Leech (brown).
Bark beetle larvae.
Sweet dough (without flavorings, as they may repel fish during the winter season).
Semolina chatter.
For catching rudd in spring, the best baits are:
Peas.
Dough.
Hominy.
Worm.
Maggot.
For fishing in the summer season, it is best to use the following baits:
Spoon.
Corn.
Bloodworm.
For fall fishing, it is recommended to use only animal baits. These include:
Worm.
Crawling out.
Caddisfly larvae.
Beetle larvae.

For fishing in winter it is best to use:
Amphipods (their larvae or young individuals).
Caddisfly larvae (used when the rudd bite is very weak and needs to be activated).
Bloodworm (is one of the best baits for catching rudd in winter).
Maggot (place several larvae on the hook at a time);
Leech (brown).
Bark beetle larvae.
Sweet dough (without flavorings, as they may repel fish during the winter season).
Semolina chatter.
For catching rudd in spring, the best baits are:
Peas.
Dough.
Hominy.
Worm.
Maggot.
For fishing in the summer season, it is best to use the following baits:
Spoon.
Corn.
Bloodworm.
For fall fishing, it is recommended to use only animal baits. These include:
Worm.
Crawling out.
Caddisfly larvae.
Beetle larvae.

Depending on the gear used, the following baits should be used:

If you catch rudd using a spinning rod, then the best baits are:
Artificial fly.
Jig.
For fishing with a float rod, you should use the following attachments:
Sweet corn.
Worm.
Maggot.
If the catch takes place using bombard gear or, as it is also called, sbirulino, then the following components should be used as bait:
Twisters.
Vibrating tails.
Pearl barley.

If you catch rudd using a spinning rod, then the best baits are:
Artificial fly.
Jig.
For fishing with a float rod, you should use the following attachments:
Sweet corn.
Worm.
Maggot.
If the catch takes place using bombard gear or, as it is also called, sbirulino, then the following components should be used as bait:
Twisters.
Vibrating tails.
Pearl barley.

What to feed?

The success of fishing largely depends on the right location, bait and bait.

The importance of the latter cannot be underestimated, since it helps to accustom the fish to a certain place and even time of day, and to activate the bite

A universal bait can be considered crackers, pre-fried in vegetable oil, preferably unrefined.

The crackers, along with pieces of macadamia, can be placed in a vegetable net and cast on a fishing line to the intended fishing spot.

Such bait will float in a certain place, create food turbidity around itself, attracting fish.

Another option is feeding with small cakes based on cereals or grains. Usually this is pearl barley, millet, to which ground seeds or hemp seeds, flavorings, bite activators and various dusting ingredients are added.

As the latter, you can use breadcrumbs, semolina, ground cookies, and flour. Some fishermen also add crushed worms, maggots, and insects.

Here it is important not to overdo it and not to overfeed the fish, but only to attract it and preferably awaken the appetite. For this, there are attractants that can be purchased at a fishing store or prepared yourself

Animal origin

It is recommended to add a little bit of bait to the bait that you plan to fish with.

It can be divided into two types:

animal origin;
vegetable;

The first includes worms, maggots, dragonflies, grasshoppers, crayfish, and bloodworms. Animal bait is used more in winter, spring and autumn. For bait, they are crushed and added to the main mass. Some fishermen prepare insects by drying them and grinding them into flour.

Vegetable origin

In summer, rudd prefers plant food. One of the favorites is green algae, which is found in abundance on the underwater part of reeds and various structures. Also, fish bite well on porridge, especially semolina, pearl barley or wheat, bread, dough.

Blitz tips

The best time to catch rudd is considered to be the end of May and all of June.
When catching rudd, you should always use a landing net, as this fish often breaks off.
If the bite is very weak, then you should open the rudd’s stomach and see what it ate. Depending on this, it is necessary to change the nozzle used.
When catching rudd, the fisherman must be very quiet, since this fish is very shy.
The best time of day for catching rudd is considered to be early morning and the first hours after sunset. In addition, this fish is sometimes more active at night.

Fishing with popla popper

Date: May 7, 2021 | 178

There are very ordinary, traditional methods of fishing, and there are very unusual, strange, but, at the same time, effective in their time and under appropriate conditions. One of these extraordinary fishing methods is fishing with a pop-popper. Since soft silicone baits are used here, this gear and the features of its use will be discussed in this review.

Popla-popper is a hybrid spinning rod rig. It is based on a device that combines the properties of a float and a spinning bait such as a popper. There is no hook on the pop-popper itself, but a leash made of thin fluorocarbon or fishing line is attached to it. A small single hook is tied to the end of the leash. A small twister, a silicone worm, a silicone larva, an imitation of maggot, in general, almost any small silicone is attached to it. Naturally, it is best to use edible silicone impregnated with an attractant. It is also possible to use live animal baits.

Popla poppers catch a wide variety of fish. Basically, the objects of such fishing are:

rudd;
perch;
small pike;
chub;
asp;
trout.

Catching rudd with popla popper

In summer, in hot weather, on bays and oxbow lakes, on lakes, large rudd stays in the upper and middle layers of water, near aquatic vegetation, at the edges of water lilies. This is where the pop-popper setup comes in handy. This device will allow us to throw the tackle far; attract rudd from afar (with a popper squelch), and also, place a miniature bait resembling a worm, larva or insect, near the surface or into the floor of the water.

Of course, it is more convenient to fish from a small inflatable boat. It glides perfectly through the algae, and if it frightens the fish, it is only when it gets very close. The craft allows you to stand and cast as best you can, not as you have to. But sometimes situations arise in small bays where it is quite possible to fish from the shore.

So, we attached a pop-popper with a leash to our light spinning rod. We throw it out the window among the algae, or on the edge of the water lilies. We carry it out like a regular popper, in short jerks. We make fairly long pauses, during which the bait slowly sinks under the weight of the hook. It is during pauses that large rudd most often attack.

Of course, as mentioned above, not only rudd bite on a rig with a pop-popper. Perches are fun to bite on this tackle. You come across chub, asp, pike and other fish that are no strangers to staying near the surface and in the middle layers of water.

DIY popla popper

Since the equipment is primitive, you can make it yourself. In the end, sets with mini poppers are not always on sale. The basic float size is 25mm, weight 2.5-3g. At home, you can cut a blank from a dry twig, a thick fragment of pine bark, or hard foam; the thickened part is beveled at a slight angle, literally 5-10 degrees from the straight end cut. The recess in the bow is also selected with a knife or a rounded chisel, if available. Well, they polish the recess by wrapping sandpaper around the rounded end of the stick.

An axial hole is made in the workpiece with an awl or a thin drill. The frame is bent from copper or steel wire. The wire axle is primitive. Just two loops at the ends. A spinning line is attached to the front one, in the nose. To the back is a leash with bait.

It is necessary to load the lower part so that the bait occupies the correct position in the water. To do this, make a longitudinal cut or drill a hole. Either a strip of lead or a shot is pressed into it. Tests can be carried out at this stage, for example in a bathtub or in shallow water. It is necessary to find out whether the funnel creates gurgling noise when jerking the wiring. Then the product is dried if it was made of wood.

Categories: Fishing for food · Tags: Rudd, Maggot, Popper, Silicone

Techniques and techniques for casting, retrieving, retrieving

The described tackle is quite safe in terms of hooks, therefore it is applicable to rudd habitats overgrown with vegetation. You need to try to take a position near the pond so that the fisherman’s shadow does not fall on the water. It is best to position yourself behind reeds or bushes. Casting from such a shelter will not be very convenient, but the chances of catching fish increase significantly.

It is important to present the bait to the far edge of the window in the vegetation so that the popper can make as many movements as possible during the retrieve with a sound that attracts the attention of the fish. After casting, you need to wait a few seconds before making the first reel. After each short reeling there should be a stop of up to 5-7 seconds so that the hook with bait can drop to the length of the leash

It is at this moment that the greatest number of bites occur

Each short reeling should be followed by a stop of up to 5-7 seconds so that the baited hook can drop to the length of the leader. It is at this moment that the greatest number of bites occur

After casting, you need to wait a few seconds before making the first reel. Each short reeling should be followed by a stop of up to 5-7 seconds so that the baited hook can drop to the length of the leader. It is at this moment that the greatest number of bites occur.

After hooking, the fish is brought to the shore without delay, but also without jerking, where it is retrieved using a landing net on a long handle, eliminating the need to leave its hiding place.

If the bites are active, but the fish cannot be detected, you should reduce the length of the leash. After the bite stops, it is better to move to another promising place.

Tips for beginner spinning players

At the end of our information article, I would like to give some advice to novice fishermen:

Don't multiply entities. In the first stages, you shouldn’t delve too deeply into the intricacies of fishing science: master at least the basics, otherwise you will be confused by the abundance of information.

Strive for versatility. At first, do not focus on choosing highly specialized expensive equipment: something universal from the middle price segment will do.

Take a closer look at the tactics of experienced fishermen. Watch and remember where and how others fish: practical experience is invaluable.

Take plenty of leashes and baits. The first fishing trip in my life (however, like subsequent ones, the frequency simply decreases) is a series of everyday problems with gear. You should always be prepared to replace a broken leader or bait.

Don't overdo it. If you decide to fish with a spinning rod, get ready for a significant expenditure of energy and effort

Even if you are in good physical shape, it is important to observe moderation, despite the excitement: your hand will definitely ache in any case, but you should not let the discomfort lead to a complete aversion to spinning.

Good luck and productive fishing to you, dear beginning spinners! We hope that our short excursion into the theoretical foundations of fishing will help you in practice: let the first fishing in your life bring not only pleasure, but also a sparkling result!

Habitats and habits

Both in appearance and behavior, the rudd resembles a roach. For example, both of them avoid areas of the reservoir with fast currents. But if the roach is not afraid to go out into clean water, then its red-feathered neighbor prefers to stay in the most remote places, densely overgrown with reeds, reeds, arrowheads, water lilies and other plants. This may be a partially separated old river bed or a small bay, flowing lake, or reservoir. Here she has everything she needs for life: an abundance of food, reliable shelter from predators, a suitable oxygen regime.

There are a lot of snags and grass in the coastal zone, so the concentration of rudd is maximum here. True, more often these are small and medium-sized individuals living in flocks. But large specimens love space. They spend most of their time away from the coast, in places with overgrown underwater hills. They enter the thickets of coastal vegetation only occasionally to feed themselves.

Rudd is a sedentary fish. She always stays in the area she likes, where she often walks in mid-water, and in extreme heat she rises to the surface to bask in the sun. In calm, warm weather, this fish makes its presence known with splashes and a characteristic smacking sound. This is how she hunts midges and other small insects in thickets of pondweed and egg capsules. Late in the evening, she likes to “keep vigil” under the branches hanging over the water in the hope that the wind will blow away some living creatures from the trees.

How to catch rudd correctly

How to catch rudd
Rudd is a shy fish. And this means that on the shore you need to behave as quietly as possible, less loud conversations and slaps on the water, more thoughtfulness and watching the float jumping on the surface of the water.

To catch a trophy fish, you can even throw the bait not immediately into the water, but first onto a lily pad, and then carefully pull it right under the rudd’s nose.

The method of fishing with a slowly sinking bait also performed well. However, the best way to land a serious fish is to fish from the bottom with a large bait.

Methods and techniques for catching rudd using a spinning rod

As for baits, in principle, you can fish with almost everything that is customary to fish with a spinning rod: from a regular spinner to a crank and a cicada. However, experts in this field advise not to split hairs, and if there is a large fish, then use an ordinary medium-sized “spinner”. However, such fishing luck rarely, if ever, happens, so you should prepare responsibly for catching rudd. At the same time, professionals advise giving preference to one of four types of baits and rigs: microjig, split-shot, spinnerbait and wacky. We will talk about each of them in more detail:

Fishing with micro jig

This type of equipment is best used on reservoirs that are heavily overgrown with grass and reeds, one and a half meters deep or more. The microjig itself is a silicone bait with a hook and sinker. However, the main difference between microjig and classic jig is the use of smaller baits made of softer silicone. In addition, when choosing a microjig, fishermen prioritize the size of the bait rather than its weight, so they use sinkers weighing from 1 to 6-7 grams. Heavier weights are used when the fish goes deeper. In addition, the weight of the jig head depends on the strength of the current.

It is also important not to overdo it with hook sizes - you should not choose hooks larger than No. 4 according to international classifications. Regarding the bait itself, there are many options, and there is only one warning - it is better not to use a twister for this, and if you decide to take a risk and attach a twister to a jig head, then simply tear off the tail

Otherwise, the miniature rudd simply will not swallow your bait. Experts also advise: when fishing from the shore with such equipment, use rods up to 2 meters long.

Split shot fishing

This is a special equipment in which the bait is located at some distance from the sinker fixed on the fishing line. This type of equipment should be used for catching active rudd in shallow water, or when the fish is noticeably lethargic. In addition, it is worth taking care of the size of all elements of such equipment - they should be miniature, since we have already mentioned the small size of the rudd’s mouth. For bait, it is best to use artificial bloodworms or maggots. Many people make them, but the best option is bait from Berkley, Rein3 or Aiko DreamBait; they, according to experts, have more “edible” rubber. In addition, it is worth mentioning the technique of fishing with a split shot - in no case should you move it jerkily, this bait is characterized by smooth movements.

Fishing with weki

This is a rather non-trivial type of equipment, when the hook is threaded across the bait, and not, as usual, along. Thus, when using veki, you can choose any silicone product. However, again, consider the size of the rudd. If you are fishing for small fish, then the weight of the entire structure should not exceed 1.5 grams, so take care of a mini shotgun, a miniature worm and a small hook. However, this option is only suitable for short casting - no more than 8 meters, therefore, when deciding to use such equipment, it is worth taking into account the fishing area.

Fishing with a spinnerbait

This is the most artificial of all spinning baits. It consists of a wire corner: one or several round petals the size of a little fingernail are attached to one end, and a lead head with a hook framed by a “skirt” is attached to the opposite end. This bait is suitable for active fish that like to attack noisy bait. However, even here you should discard the skirt, and instead put the front part of the twister on the hook, having first shortened its tail greatly. Among other things, due to the wire frame, such a bait is characterized by increased cross-country ability, which makes it simply irreplaceable for fishing in thickets of underwater vegetation - where rudd especially likes to live, and the petals create some vibrations in the water, which this fish especially likes.

Catching rudd with a spinning rod - 10 questions about rudd

The rudd received official recognition as a predatory fish in 2000, at the first Russian Spinning Championship. And that story began a year earlier, when we, mainly spinning players from the capital, managed to convince the organizer of the Kuban Spring spinning competition, Oleg Grechushnikov, to include the rudd in the list of fish accepted for scoring.

So how predatory is the rudd?

Although the winners of the 2000 spinning championship made their mark on rudd, the question of its carnivory still remains relevant. This fish, interestingly, is found in various European countries; it is actively caught everywhere, but almost exclusively with float tackle using approximately the same baits as bream or roach. At least, I don’t remember that at least one of the European fishing magazines would say anything about catching rudd with a spinning rod. It’s difficult for me to give an unambiguous assessment, but most likely the point is not that “their” rudd is more “herbivorous”, but that in today’s Russia the level and pace of development of spinning fishing is generally higher. Therefore, we were able to adapt to the requirements that are far from average standards that are imposed by spinning rudd fishing, but the more conservative and inert Europeans did not. After all, in our country, if you look at the fishing literature of twenty or thirty years ago, the rudd passed exclusively as a “peaceful” fish; it has not become more predatory since then, we just learned how to catch it. In general, the rudd, as confirmed by ichthyologists, is an omnivorous fish, and the fry makes up on average about a third of its normal diet.

Is it true that rudd is caught with spinning rods only from the Black Earth Region and further south?

I thought so myself at first. The first two or three seasons after I started regularly catching rudd, any positive results occurred in reservoirs located from the 50th parallel and below. In the Moscow region, I almost didn’t catch rudd, but not so much because in our area it doesn’t take spinning bait, but because it somehow didn’t work out. Still, in the middle zone there are generally fewer rudd than in the south; we still need to look for them.

But then one of my cap friends mentioned about the oxbow lake of the Moscow River, where he successfully catches rudd. I decided to check these words, went and caught them! Well, maybe not as much as you usually catch near Astrakhan or Rostov, but about two dozen per fishing trip is realistic. True, my interest was purely sporting. You can’t call rudd a delicacy – it’s small, bony, with bitterish meat...

Then I happened to catch rudd in various places. True, I didn’t fish in the north, but, most likely, only because I haven’t been to the north much at all. And my friends, whom you can trust one hundred percent, caught rudd in the Leningrad and Kostroma regions. Moreover, they caught a lot of them using practically the same baits that are successfully caught in southern reservoirs.

I had to read somewhere that rudd begins to feed on fry in mid-summer.

Should you try to catch it with a spoon at the beginning of the season?

The above-mentioned “Kuban Spring” competitions take place in early May. The rudd is very aggressive at this time - just give it a spinner. Near Astrakhan, the largest rudd comes in April. So in the south there is no such pattern: in the fall they bite on a spoon, in the spring they don’t. In the middle zone, I’m ready to admit, all my positive experience of catching rudd occurred from mid-July to early October. But I would not make generalizations from this; after all, we don’t have enough statistics here.

I live in the Bryansk region and often fish with a spinning rod in the oxbow lakes of the Desna River.

There are a lot of rudd there, and I have repeatedly heard that some spinning anglers successfully catch them.

But I don’t come across anything except pikes and perches. Why?

Many spinning anglers from Rostov or Novorossiysk, who live, one might say, in the “red-feathered Eldorado,” also do not come across rudd. And only because catching this fish requires a fundamentally different approach than catching more familiar predators. By “different approach” we mean the whole complex of factors. For example, when fishing for pike and perch, you may not go lower than number three spinners. For a rudd, if, as is most often the case, it is small in size, this is clearly too much. And all redfin tackle in general rarely goes beyond the ultra-light class, and for you such a class may simply not exist. Plus, the most typical habitat for rudd is, although it is very close to the places where pike and perch are caught, but not quite. In a word, objective fishing for rudd requires an objective focus on it. The rudd does not respect the universal approach.

Then what are the optimal “spinners” (models and sizes) for hunting rudd?

Of the serial models, in my experience, the best for rudd is the Mepps Comet, as well as the closest to it, the DAM Effzett. On average, rudd are caught worse on “spinners” with a “long” shaped petal, although there are exceptions in certain reservoirs.

The size of the spoon depends primarily on the size of the fish, and secondly on its aggressiveness at a given time. At competitions near Krasnodar, the most common rudd weighing about 100 g is best suited for it. “Comet” of the first number is best suited for it. If the average weight is twice as large - the second. It is worth purposefully catching the third number only for large rudd - from four hundred grams. At competitions, you often have to deviate from the standard in the other direction - set a zero when there is a rudd of a frankly “sports” size.

During the periods when rudd are most active (usually in spring and early autumn), they often attack larger baits. At the same time, the number of bites is large, but relatively few fish are caught.

If standard lures are not ideal for catching rudd, then in what direction should they be improved?

The main modification option concerns these very cases - when a small rudd tries to eat a “spinner” that is too large for its mouth. The fishing efficiency increases by one and a half to two times if you replace the standard tee with a smaller one. And in a normal situation (with average rudd activity), a smaller tee is preferable to a standard one. Therefore, for some time now, when I have to catch rudd, I remount several turntables that I plan to use.

Here it is worth mentioning one subtlety. If you simply install a proportionally smaller tee instead of a standard tee, it will turn out that the tips of its hooks will be too close to the rotating petal, which will not have the best effect on the effectiveness of bites. Therefore, you should either take a tee with a relatively long fore-end, or resolve the issue using a slightly elongated wire frame.

Finally, it makes sense on some “turntables” to completely replace the tee with a single hook. This is justified primarily where you have to fish directly among the grass. Such a spinner clings to it much less often, but the rudd sits on a single bait almost as well as on a tee.

Is there any point in trying to catch a rudd with a wobbler?

It makes sense, in my opinion, only if it comes in grams of three hundred or more. Smaller ones can also be caught with wobblers, but this will be on the verge of perversion. In fact, why try to catch fish with a microwobbler weighing one and a half to two grams, if it is caught just as well with other types of bait, which are twice as heavy, cast three times further and cling to algae four times less often? If it is a wobbler, then of all their types, two are appropriate in this case. These are quite thick “cranks” with small and medium depth and especially rattlins, the size in both cases is 3-4 cm.

If it’s not a spinner or a wobbler, then what?

"Rubber" and spinner bait. Even, perhaps, the priority here is the opposite: this “spinner” can be considered as an alternative to “rubber” and a spinner bait. By “rubber” we mean either an ordinary small (2-3 g) jig head with a twister, or a rig where the bait is attached to a simple single hook, and a pellet is attached to the fishing line about twenty centimeters in front of it.

As for the spinner bait, I have not yet seen a ready-made one that would suit us in catching rudd, so I have to make it myself. What we need is a weight of about 3 g, a single petal of a size even slightly smaller than on “00” spinners, a “skirt” is not necessary, you can get by with a small twister.

In a magazine article about “edible rubber” it was said that the rudd is partial to certain varieties

such new baits for us. Can we expect that the number of bites when switching from a conventional bait

on a twister jig head on “edible” will increase several times?

The number of bites when switching to “edible rubber” actually increases, but the main thing is that their quality improves, that is, the rudd, having taken such bait in its mouth, is in no hurry to get rid of it. It is important that the jig head is as light as possible. It’s even better to fish with a rig with a simple hook and a shot in front. Well, the brand of “edible rubber” is not the least important.

If you catch rudd with an almost weightless bait, is it worth using a bombard?

Bombarda is probably too much. The required casting range when fishing for rudd usually does not exceed 20 m, but on average we fish from a distance of 8-10 m. So if a bombard, then the smallest one - slowly sinking, with a dry weight of 3-4 g. Not every company in There are such miniature bombards in our assortment.

As an alternative, I can offer this option. You take a sinking wobbler-minnow 4-5 cm long, remove the tees from it, tie it backwards, and at the back, tie a 30-centimeter leash made of monofilament fishing line with “rubber” on a single line. It works no worse than the bombard option. Perhaps even better.

K. Kuzmin