Step 6: Enjoy The Fruits (erm...i mean...fish :D) of your labor
The title of this last step implies, it is time to enjoy the effort you put into catching your minnows. Really from here anything and everything is your decision...Where to put the trap, what to bait it with, how long to leave it in the water...its all you from here...however, i would like to make some suggestions:
It is best to put the trap i the more shallow water that the minnows prefer (at least thats where i have seen ALOT of minnows) however it really depends on the body of water. Minnows will frequent the shoreline in most rivers, creeks, and streams because the water doesnt flow as fast. Lakes they may frequent deeper water.
Bait is a little tricky...i dont know how many species of minnow are out there but i DO know that there are too many species for me to really care...BUT i am pretty sure they will eat anything. i remember as a kid, i would wade into the lake and soon after i got all settled, BAM!!! there they were trying to eat the hair off my legs. Point is im pretty sure each species prefers different baits, so if one bait isnt producing results then put something else in the trap. Trial and error here.
LASTLY...the length of time...again from what ive seen before, you could have a swarm in your trap as soon as it hits the water. OR you may get nothing at all for 2 hours. refer to the above paragraph if the latter is the case. If you leave the trap in the water too long, a predator (bird, rodent, fish, or other animal) could get a hold of the trap or its potential contents...of course depenting on your game of choice this could either help you or hurt you in the long run...you could get a better bait such as crawfish and hook a huge Aligator Gar, or frogs and hook a Bluegill.
None the less, i hope Yall have enjoyed this Instructable as much as i have enjoyed making it!!
It is best to put the trap i the more shallow water that the minnows prefer (at least thats where i have seen ALOT of minnows) however it really depends on the body of water. Minnows will frequent the shoreline in most rivers, creeks, and streams because the water doesnt flow as fast. Lakes they may frequent deeper water.
Bait is a little tricky...i dont know how many species of minnow are out there but i DO know that there are too many species for me to really care...BUT i am pretty sure they will eat anything. i remember as a kid, i would wade into the lake and soon after i got all settled, BAM!!! there they were trying to eat the hair off my legs. Point is im pretty sure each species prefers different baits, so if one bait isnt producing results then put something else in the trap. Trial and error here.
LASTLY...the length of time...again from what ive seen before, you could have a swarm in your trap as soon as it hits the water. OR you may get nothing at all for 2 hours. refer to the above paragraph if the latter is the case. If you leave the trap in the water too long, a predator (bird, rodent, fish, or other animal) could get a hold of the trap or its potential contents...of course depenting on your game of choice this could either help you or hurt you in the long run...you could get a better bait such as crawfish and hook a huge Aligator Gar, or frogs and hook a Bluegill.
None the less, i hope Yall have enjoyed this Instructable as much as i have enjoyed making it!!
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ljrodgers209
says:
Feb 7, 2012. 11:24 PMReply
These work well enough that I used them on my masters degree research project awhile back. If you replace the bottle cap with a piece of insect screen held on by a rubber band the fish inside will live longer. It allows oxygen into the bottle.
22
sokamiwohali (author)
in reply to Feb 8, 2012. 12:22 AMReplydrilling holes large enough in the bottlecap, or in specific "strategic" locations on the outer bottle would work just as well, and save money. great idea though if you have insect screen just laying around somewhere thats not being occupied by a window already. If the idea is to keep the fish alive, than i guess this would work, but the trap is mainly short term as the minnows would be used for fishing.
Potroast
says:
Dec 8, 2011. 8:24 AMReply
This is very cool. I have used the same set up for a wasp/hornet trap with some bait (meat or apple) in the bottom. Do you use bread for minnows, or something different? Is there any trick to finding likely places to set the trap? Thanks for the instructable!
22
sokamiwohali (author)
in reply to Dec 8, 2011. 1:41 PMReplyYour Welcome! And thanks for the great feedback. i will have details on the final stepo soon.
ppetersen3
says:
Dec 5, 2011. 3:49 PMReply
Very cool!
22
sokamiwohali (author)
in reply to Dec 5, 2011. 4:16 PMReplyThank You!!
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