A Simple Guide to Fish Attractants

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Fishermen are known to use almost any item in their arsenal to snag that big catch, but many still turn up their noses at the use of fish attractants, believing them to be a fishy gimmick. But fish attractants have the ability to enhance the effectiveness of your well-chosen lures and baits, and while artificial attractants have recently gained more steam in the fishing community, natural attractants have been used by fishermen for decades.

It was only in the late 1970s that fishermen started to see manufacturers coming out with artificial attractants with the promise of ‘catching more and bigger fish’ than artificial baits alone. The common ingredient in these relics was a pungent fish oil, and while some worked better in certain scenarios than others, the fact of the matter is that anglers realized that these manufacturers were indeed onto something.

Nowadays, there are a wide variety of fish attractants available on the market aimed at improving your chances of success out on the water. As with anything, there are certain tips and guidelines to keep in mind when perusing the shelves that can help you choose the right attractant for your specific scenario. With over 20,000 fishing items in our inventory, Outdoor Shopping has the most extensive lineup of fishing equipment online today! Shop our inventory of fish attractants at Outdoor Shopping.

Types of Fish Attractants

The market for fish attractants is versatile, boasting a range of types of attractants from spray bottles and tubes to jars and jellies.

Composition

Because nobody can say for certain which scents attract fish the most, manufacturers have attempted to cover all their bases by using a combination of natural ingredients, oils, and enzyme or hormone enhancers to give fishermen the most possibility for a successful catch.

The active ingredients in most fish attractants are oils extracted from:

• Shad

• Crayfish

• Baitfish

• Worms

• Garlic

• Anise

• Other plants, fruits, or seeds

In fact, some attractants may also be laced with compounds of enzymes, hormones, or pheromones with the hopes of tapping into natural biological responses of feeding fish. The materials used to manufacture these attractants are typically by-products or left-overs of other manufacturing processes like the manufacturing of fish meal or cat food, for instance. When combined with oils and compounds, these attractants provide better, longer-lasting underwater adhesion essential to keeping the attractant on your lure after casting.

How to Apply

Depending on the attractant you choose to purchase, they can be applied in a variety of ways.

• Sprays: Simply spray attractant directly onto your bait. Reserve the spray until right before you plan to cast, and allow the spray to soak into your lure for a short period of time before casting into the water. Make sure to apply this type of attractant out of the line of direct wind.

• Squeeze Tubes/Squirt Bottles: These can either be applied directly to the lure or - better yet - into a Ziploc baggie wherein you’re able to add your lure for easy, mess-free application that’s sure to cover the lure in its entirety without getting all over your hands.

• Jars/Jellies: These are meant for fishermen to easily dip their bait or lure directly into the jar for full-coverage application. Just be sure to do it over the side of the boat so that any drips don’t fall to the floor and stink up your operation.

• Pellets/Mallows: Some of these types of attractants are also good enough to use as a lure, but many are added as an addition to a lure or bait for added attraction. Simply lace onto your hook as you would a lure or bait.

Target Species

Most of the times, fish attractants are used to enhance the success of catching warm water species like bass, catfish, salmon, and carp who tend to spit out a lure within two to three seconds if not given more qualities to keep them holding on. But which attractants are most effective for which fish? The true answer is that nobody knows for sure.

Depending on what you’re fishing for, you may find yourself having more success with attractants than if you were to use attractants with other species of fish. Some species have a finely-tuned sense of smell while others may not notice the attractant until the last second - if at all. On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being the most sensitive sense of smell) here are some examples of common gamefish:

• 1-2: Pike and Muskie

• 5: Bass and Walleye

• 6-7: Salmon and Trout

• 7-8: Carp

• 9-10: Catfish and Carp

Many tend to use chum-type attractants in saltwater applications to draw more sensitive-snouted fish into the area. With more sensitive fish, they’re likely to pick up on your attractant long before they see your bait itself. For the less sensitive pike and muskie, the benefit of an attractant is only fully realized right at the onset of a strike, but it can greatly improve the odds of the fish holding onto your bait for longer periods of time. Although bass are in the middle of the pack when it comes to olfactory capabilities, keep this little tidbit in mind: the freshwater black bass can sense 1/200th of a drop of a substance in 100 gallons of water.

When choosing the right attractant for your target species, be sure to keep in mind what they typically feed on. For instance, largemouth bass that tend to feed on shad will likely be most attracted to natural attractants made with - you guessed it - shad! Oddfish scents like garlics and cheeses also have a way of being your ace in the hole when fishing situations seem to be going against the grain. The best bet is to take a few logical choices with you as well as a few wild cards and to change it up to see what the fish are biting for.

With over 20,000 fishing items in our inventory, Outdoor Shopping has the most extensive lineup of fishing equipment online today! Shop our inventory of fish attractants at Outdoor Shopping.