Date:2021-08-14 20:48:25 Publisher:admin Click:415
For some the words prawn and shrimp are used interchangeably and no distinction is made between the two crustaceans. This has led to common misconceptions among seafood enthusiasts who assume that prawns are in fact just larger versions of shrimp. This notion is in fact a myth, and it is important to understand that when attempting to learn how to catch prawns.
In terms of how to catch prawns, there are a variety of things to take into account while planning your next prawn fishing trip. Things like the time of year, type of bait, tide, whether it’s day or night, and the different types of fishing techniques for catching prawns.
All right so you’ve decided that you want to go prawn fishing, great! the next step is deciding when to go, and order to do that we have to know what the ideal conditions are for prawning. Unfortunately the answer to this question is largely: it depends.
The reason it depends is because since prawns are located all around the world, it will largely based on where you live that you can most accurately figure out the best conditions. To do that I suggest a quick Google search for the prawn fishing seasonality in your area, that should clear up some of the localized details around how you can get started.
A good general time frame for the best months to go prawn fishing are November, December, January, February, and March. In other words, the best time to go prawn fishing are during the majority of months with contain the letter ‘r’.
Now besides that there are a few things worth mentioning in terms of the ideal conditions for prawn fishing, that I and many other fisherman like myself like to follow as a rule of thumb. These things include the weather conditions, tide, lunar cycles, time of day, and the type of body of water you’ll be fishing in.
As far as weather goes it doesn’t matter too much whether it’s hot, cold, windy, or rainy since prawns can technically be caught with the same amount of success in any given situation. The thing to know about weather and the effect it has on prawns, is that prawns are typically more active as the temperature increases. this means that if it is warmer outside you may have a higher chance coming across prawns since they will be moving more actively around the lake.
Wind also plays a role in the behavior of prawns. If it is extremely windy outside, and the water is choppy, it may be hard for you to visibly see through the water and the prawns can dive pretty deep. So if you are using a net, catching prawns under these conditions may become impossible. On the other hand if it is still windy out but not to the point where you can’t see through the water, simply follow the wind to whatever water bank it is blowing towards and you may find the prawns there, since since they typically run away from which ever way the wind is blowing.
There’s a key term that all potential prawners should know, and that is, “ the period of the dark”. When I first heard this term I have to admit I thought it was kind of silly and for some reason made me think of a title for a post-apocalyptic fiction novel. However The period of the dark is in fact a very useful method of determining when the best time go prawn fishing is based on lunar cycles, and the tides of a coastal lake.
Calculating the period of the dark is quite easy and all you need to do is add nine days to the date of a full moon. The period the dark is when the nights become progressively darker and the tide range progressively increases. When tides are on the ebb or run-out during this period, prawns are more aggressive in their migration removing seaward. So, fishing during these times will likely yield you with the best results possible.
This has a more direct answer which is that prawns are more likely to be caught at night. The common joke among fishermen such as myself is that because they are such a popular shellfish to go after they have been scared into only coming out after hours.
In reality has to do with the fact the prawns are largely nocturnal and prefer nights, more specifically the nights after the full moon where it is more or less pitch black. So be sure to bring a flashlight along with whatever net or prawn fishing equipment you may have.
The good news when it comes to how deep you should be going to catch prawns is that they typically hangout around the more shallow and warmer areas of a coastal lake or bay. the lifestyle of a young prawn typically starts out in these locations, where it will grow up and eventually make the long trek out to the ocean which is the time and maturity level that you will want to catch them at.
Fishing rods are a unique way to get started catching prawns. Although most people will decide to use a net or trap due to the sheer number of prawns that you can catch with it. A fishing rod is simply another alternative for people who aren’t interested in getting wet. Unlike most regular fishing poles a prawning pole is much thinner and more compact because of the prawns small size.
Nets In my opinion are the most commonly accepted technique for catching prawn especially in those places where the water is consistently shallow. Whether it’s a drop net, a handheld net, or a dragnet using one of these items you can catch multiple prawn at one time while having a fun time doing it. The only catch (no pun intended) with this technique is that you will most likely have to get in the water, and for some that may turn them off from the idea.
However for me the ability to get up close and personal with the prawns I am hoping to catch by using the net method is the primary reason that I still choose to do it this way. It just adds another level onto how fun prawn fishing really is.
Traps are an example where the fact that shrimp and prawns aren’t always distinguished from each other may actually work in our favor. In my experience when looking for prawn traps I often have better luck finding traps which are intended to be used for shrimp.
These however work tremendously well for prawns despite not being directly intended for them. This is because of the somewhat similar size, shape, and structure of the two crustaceans. Use traps for prawning when the water that you will be fishing in is so deep that you couldn’t possibly use a net.
Thankfully for me the answer to this question is no. I’ve been working on my boat for a while due to some complications with the motor, and the ability to still go prawn fishing without one makes it really convenient. I’ll go ahead and assume that a portion of the people who want to get started doing this sort of thing may not have a boat at all which again makes it a very convenient animal to go fishing for.
As I explained up above prawns typically hang out around the warmer and shallower parts of whatever lake, bay, or pool of coastal water you are in. Which in turn typically makes the use of a boat not as necessary. However depending on the body of water that you will be in, a small boat preferably with a quiet or non-existent engine, can make navigating throughout the shallow body of water much easier. Learn more about where you will be going prawning before deciding whether bringing a boat seems like a good idea.
When it comes to choosing the best prawn bait for your traps or fishing rods there isn’t exactly a hard fast rule. Some will tell you that the remains of a freshly filleted fish will do just fine, others will say that you need to buy fish bait pellets from your local fishing shop and soak them in smelly fish oil to do the trick.
So what’s the reality? Well the truth is pretty much anything with a fishy or outright stinky smell will work just fine. If you can afford it, and are able to find them, specially made bait pellets for prawns can be used with high rates of success. The combination of such bait pellets with other fishy smelling items like sardines can increase the range of the smell to attract even more prawns into your trap.
The key thing when choosing the best prawn bait is something that contains a lot of smelly oil, and provides the greatest amount of convenience to you, the fisherman. Sometimes that means store-bought pellets soaked in fish oil, and sometimes that means the guts of a salmon you had just caught the morning prior.
Throughout my years of fishing, prawns have always been a favorite of mine to go out and catch. And like myself the majority of you will learn almost everything you need to know through experience and trial and error. However in order to make that learning curve as painless as possible here are a few tips that I have found to be extremely helpful when it comes to prawns.
Oily and smelly prawn bait aside when it comes to the natural diet of a prawn and its day-to-day life it’s important to know that plants, specifically green seaweed, make up a large part of that diet. So whenever you are out walking around with your net on a cool summer night, keep your eye out for any patches of green seaweed.
Prawn are known for hanging around this stuff either eating it or hiding in it. So don’t forget to check out any patches you may find and you might be surprised to see a large group of them simply standing among the seaweed strands.
Although it is entirely possible to do this sort of thing alone, it can become much easier if you have a partner to help you. Some examples of this could be if were attempting to coax a prawn or two into a net one person could man the net well the other works to guide the prawn backwards into it.
Also, if you happen to have brought a boat with you one person could remain on the outside of the boat with the net while the other holds the light and steers the boat accordingly. This two-person system is one that I’ve used in the past and something I would personally recommend especially for those with little to no experience in the craft.
In case you were unaware, a sounder is simply a device which emits a sonar frequency to determine approximately how many, and how deep, fish are in the water. These types of devices can be used for prawns as well.
Simply look for large cloud-like masses on the screen somewhere near the bottom. This will help distinguish the fish, which are more or less single blips on the screen, and the prawns which travel in large thick groups.
As I previously mentioned prawns prefer to avoid any kind of light which is why catching them in the after hours is preferable. Because of this it’s necessary to bring along some sort of flashlight. More or less, any flashlight should work however finding one that’s waterproof would be ideal for obvious reasons.
The flashlight is used especially when fishing with a net, that way you will be able to judge which way the prawns are moving before swooping them up and also potentially coaxing them backwards into a partners second net.
Article is from shellfishenthusiast.com/
