let's talk about leeches...

[d-mack]

This morning I discovered a honey hole for nice looking leeches near my home. I was wondering who has used them and for what types of fish. What's the best way to rig them and how should they be presented? These ones are a mottled brown color and average 3" to 4" and about as big around as a pencil.
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[Fishhound]

Are they ribbon, tape, or horse leeches ? Collect a bunch of them and put them in a can half full of water and leave them there for a couple of hours. Then see if they crawl out. If they crawl out of the water they are horse leeches , don't bother using them - they don't work very well. If they stay in the water, they are the kind of leech that works.
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[d-mack]

I tried it. They crawled out. [mad]

Why does one type work and the other not?
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[KokaneeReaper]

I think your wrong about the crawling out part I have used thosands of leaches and if they have an opening to get out of the bait box they will take it and it dose not take much water for those slimy little bugers to get moving i would send in a pic of the leaches get a close up and we can make a better decision on what type of leach it is
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[Theekillerbee]

I've heard they will work well for most species of fish. But the only time I have ever used them was at work when we applied them to a recently reattached finger to try to save the thing (they suck out out blood and enourage fresh oxygenated blood into the area to promote healing). The cool thing is than when they had had their fill, we'd drop them in rubbing alcohol and they would swell and explode! I personally thought it was kinda cool.
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[KokaneeReaper]

[cool] sicko LOL
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[FlyingFish]

I caught the biggest catfish of my life with a leech. I simply hooked it once through the head end and tossed it out under a bobber.
I used to gather them from an irigation ditch in fron of where I lived. Ive since moved and dont have my ready supply of leeches. Consider yourself lucky!
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[fishnate]

Take one and put it on a hook. If is swims when put in water you have a leech that will catch fish. If it balls up around the hook and won't swim its the wrong type. Horse and medicine leeches ball up but ribbon leeches swim like dinner to a fish.
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