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Tilapia fishing is one of the angler’s favorite things to do. This fish is particularly known for its delicious taste as mild-flavored white meat, which a reason why it is highly preferred. It is a native of the Middle East and Africa; however, it can now be found in many warm waters in the United States after many years.
Catching Tilapia requires a level of fishing expertise, skills, and patience because it can be tricky and difficult to catch. An angler who is patient enough can always catch as many tilapia fish as possible. If you are interested in catching tilapia, this guide presents useful tips to make the fishing experience a good one for you, regardless of your skill level.
What are the Tips to Effectively Catch Tilapia?
Ideally, you need to be knowledgeable on how to catch tilapias, or else you may not find it easy to catch anything. Whether you are a beginner or an expert, the 8 following tips should help you catch your target.
Get a Fishing License
Fishing is considered a hobby; however, it has to be legal. Anglers, especially in the United States, are advised to get a fishing permit or license for legal purposes. This permit allows the angler to use some fishing spots with public access.
This license is also important to protect illegal fishing in designated or reserved fishing spots. So, if you are thinking about going tilapia fishing, you need to make sure you have a permit. Furthermore, ensure that the area is open to fishing and not reserved.
If you get caught tilapia fishing without a license, you could be facing lawsuits – fines and penalties.
Choose Spawning Season
Having your license is one step to many others you need to consider before tilapia fishing. Another step is choosing the season to go – spawning seasons are ideal.
Tilapia fish are found mostly for two reasons – hunger and territory protection. Spawning seasons are territorial seasons, where you will find them defensive and plentiful. During this period, tilapias attack anything that comes close to their spawning beds; however, an angler can use this to advantage.
You can go tilapia fishing during this period in the morning (sunrise), evening (sunset), and mid-day. While you are at it, you should make sure not to get too close to the spawning beds so that you don’t spook the fish.
Fish in Shallow Waters
Knowing the period to go tilapia fishing is one thing; choosing where to fish is another. Tilapia fish have different habitats, but the commonest is in shallow waters with several vegetations. They choose this habitat because it protects them from predators.
If you want to go further, you can look for tilapias in slow-moving waters and near water banks. However, one mistake you should never make is going too deep into the water because you may never find them.
Also, because you are at the recommended locations doesn’t mean you will find tilapias there. You should change positions if you don’t find them at a particular spot/location.
Use a Good Bait
A useful tip that will help make the tilapia fishing experience worth it is using good bait. You must know that tilapias are herbivores; hence, you should know the kind of diet to feed them. Plants like Corn and Peas are perfect. Bread balls and Cheese are also great.
Surprisingly, the diet may vary depending on the fishing spot. Therefore, you could take some time to study what tilapias in the area find tasty. If you conduct this little research, you will know what to prepare against your fishing time.
More importantly, attach the food bait to the hook properly to become irresistible for them.
Do a Light Tackle
If there is something you should know about tilapias, it is that: they are small-sized fish. Due to their size, they may be delicate; thus, you need to use light fishing equipment. One of the significant pieces of equipment you’ll need is a spinning reel. With this reel, you should do a light tackle to catch tilapias.
Spinning reels between rods between 6 to 7 feet are ideal. The choice of reel to use is dependent on the fishing line.
Additionally, small floats might be effective if you want to suspend the baits over spawning depressions.
These minor techniques play a huge role in making sure you catch the fish in the easiest way possible.
Handle the Tilapia Carefully
As aforementioned, tilapias are delicate fish; therefore, you need to handle them with care. There is a good chance that when you hook a tilapia, it will fight really hard. If you rush to bring the fishing rod back up, the fish could fall off the hook. You need to wait for 3 to 10 seconds before raising the rod to set the hook and suppress fish fighting.
Moreover, a tilapia fish has a tiny, soft mouth, which is another reason why you should be careful when handling the rod and reel. You could tear the mouth if you are not careful.
Watch Your Posture
An angler who wants to catch tilapias must maintain a good posture. Generally, there is a particular one for fishing, which requires holding the rod horizontally or vertically. Unfortunately, this posture doesn’t work well with this type of fish.
Tilapia fishing takes time so that you might be standing and sitting. When doing either, you should consider a downward sweep. This posture involves moving the rod between two positions – 3 o’clock and 5 o’clock.
Read on how to catch Catfish here.
Conclusion
Any angler can catch tilapias – amateur or expert, provided that the above tips are considered. While you are tilapia fishing, you should always remember how delicate this type of fish is and the need to be extra careful. Getting tilapias can be very rewarding since they are a great source of food.
