Other Fish Foods

Sculpins

These fish are loners and like to hug the bottoms of streams and lakes. They usually feed on insects, snails, aquatic worms, other fish and crustaceans. Like trout they want to inhabit lakes and streams that give them the best oxygen, food, cover and suitable temperature. Sculpins average one inch to six or eight inches in length. A top view of the fish shows pronounced tear drop, wedge-shaped, and wide-flaring pectoral fins. Their shape is similar to a bullhead with a wide head which tapers towards the tail. Large trout don’t even need to leave the bottom when sculpins are around because they are such poor swimmers and don’t generally flee up or to the shallows when chased. Colors are a lighter belly, dirty cream, tan or olive.

Baitfish Minnows

Minnows, sometimes referred to as shiners are an important forage fish for larger prey. They are in the same group as dace, whitefish, chubs, perch, fall fish, and sticklebacks. Since there are multiple life cycles, there are plenty of them to choose from anywhere from ½” to 6” or longer. These fish feed on aquatic and terrestrial insects, small fish or may even be vegetarians. When chased by a predator they are excellent swimmers maneuvering to escape, hiding below structures or darting to the surface. They have a golden olive coloration.

Threadfin Shad

The threadfin shad are fish that are usually in open waters and run in close-schooling, fast-swimming groups. These schools appear to be silvery black clouds. They can be found in waters that are warmer than 45°. They grow up to 3 inches and in some 2 year olds may be as large as 4”- 7”. They are characterized by a dark eyelike marking with a thick shaped belly. They have silver sides with a darker back. Alewives and smelts are also from this group of fish.