Most likely, everyone heard about such a fish as zander. So, this is quite an interesting and tasty inhabitant of the rivers, a representative of the perch family. Let's look at how, where, when, for what purpose this fish is caught and eaten, we will discuss fishing processes, compare methods and determine which method out of all its diversity is the most effective. We will pay special attention to catching zander on a jig from a boat.
Fish features
Pikeperch is a purely predatory fish. It lives in clean rivers, large reservoirs, seas, lakes. Pike perch mainly leads a nocturnal lifestyle, and only some individuals continue to hunt during the day. The color of the pike perch is most often gray-green, but may depend on the habitat, or rather on the color of the bottom on which it lives. The vertical stripes in the body are not as bright as those of a fellow perch.
Many have heard about zander fishing on a jig on the Volga, in the reservoirs of the Moscow Region. These are not the only fish habitats. Pike perch is quite widespread - from Europe to Asia. One of its features is its mouth, resembling a pike. She is just as wide, toothy. Of course, zander has no continuous brush of the smallest teeth. But he has 2 impressive fangs on the jaw. The fish is also remarkable for taking care of the fry, which is just emerging from the eggs.
According to the fishermen, this representative of the perch family reaches more than a meter in length and weight from 10 to 15 kg. It is important to note that many beginners, and sometimes avid fishermen, confuse zander with a ruff. These fish are similar. However, the ruff has one distinguishing feature. He has no fangs, like a pike perch, and his tongue does not turn to call him “Dracula”.
Ruffs are very much appreciated by fishermen for one reason. They say that the ear with this fish is the best ear in the world. Unfortunately, some species of ruffs are in the Red Book and are strictly forbidden to catch.
Habitat
As mentioned earlier, zander lives both in lakes and rivers, and in the seas. Fish is very finicky to their habitat and requires clean water with lots of oxygen in it. On rivers, pike perch more often lives near snags or sharp drops of depth (edge). He goes to the sandbanks at night to hunt. In lakes, fish are tied to pits, snags.
If we talk about the biological forms of the representative perch, we can distinguish residential and semi-aisle. Resident zander is the fish that lives in rivers and lakes. Semi-bore zander is also called marine. It lives in the Black and Caspian Seas. Subtypes differ only in weight. Sea pike perch is much lighter than its river cousin. Its weight is about 2-5 kg. The river can weigh 10-15 kg. The length of freshwater and sea zander is approximately the same (60–70 cm).
What eats
The fanged pike perch eats fry of fish, frogs and crustaceans in adulthood. Small individuals like to use daphnia, crustaceans, water bugs and other invertebrate inhabitants of the water. Pikeperch is a flock of fish, so there are no nutrition problems. Representatives of perch attack flocks of fry and eat them.
It can not be said that the nutrition of zander is quite diverse. Due to the structure of its mouth, it can only eat elongated and medium-sized fish (most often it is small fry or adult individuals of bleak and tyulka). This feature of nutrition is taken into account by fishermen. They rarely practice zander fishing for live bait, because bleak and other small fish species are short-lived.
Interesting observations of fishermen
Pikeperch is an active fish that travels over a large area of the reservoir. Searching for a flock is not always convenient, because sometimes you need to travel long distances. It is much more correct to follow the diurnal, seasonal migration of a predator, understand the pattern, and the next time you fish for zander in a jig in the spring, summer, or autumn, wait for the fish in a certain place and at a certain time.
Each school has its own schedule. For example, long-term observations made by fishermen at the reservoirs of the Moscow region showed that the fish move in June and July as follows:
- from about 2 to 4 hours pike perch lives in shallow brow, chalk sections of the coastal strip;
- in the period from 5 to 9 hours he migrates to deep brow, pre-bed tables (these places are considered classic for fishing);
- around 11 and 15 hours, according to the observations of fishermen, short-term outbreaks of flock activity occur in various places of the reservoir;
- from 18 to 21 hours the pike perch lives in deep brows, periodically comes to the surface for bleak;
- after 23 hours, a representative of perches is found in shallow brow, in those places where there are rocky ridges behind rifts.
Since mid-July, the activity of zander, which lives in reservoirs, begins to decline. He bites worse. As a rule, this happens at night. In October, the autumn zhor begins.
Spinning gear
Spinning rods come in different lengths and differ in dough and formation. Fishing from the shore to the jig is most often carried out using long and weighty gear. For fishing from a boat, a short, light spinning is recommended. The spinning test is determined by the weight of the weights currently used for fishing.
There are 3 types of spinning system:
- Slow. This system means that under the maximum declared load the entire spinning blank is bent.
- Middle. It is suitable for jig fishing, as well as for other types of fishing (twitching, uniform wiring). The average system means that half of the spinning is bent.
- Quick. This system of form is needed when jerking wobblers or other lures that require jerking animation. At the maximum declared load, the spinning tip bends.
In the summer at night, zander can be found on sandy beaches. He feeds on fry here. Those people who want to catch pike perch at night with a spinning rod should stock up on baits called “wobblers”. Fish, as a rule, reacts better to elongated and with a slight deepening bait, reminiscent of bleak. Most commonly used wobblers with neutral buoyancy (suspenders). Color has almost no value due to the time of day, but the fluorescent features will not hurt.
Jigging in the fall
First you need to figure out what a jig is and what it is eaten with. Jig spinning is a very interesting and productive type of fishing. Sometimes jig fishers are called dzhigits. The main distinguishing feature of jig fishing is the variety of silicone fish wiring at the bottom of the pond.
What is included in the rig of a horseman? This is a special spinning rod with a sensitive blank and a light inertialess reel, a strong thin cord and sharp hooks. Both single and double or triple hooks are used. Why is a cord used, and not a monofilament fishing line? The most important task of a fisherman is to feel both the bottom of the reservoir and the bite or any slightest blow from the fish. Monofilament fishing line stretches quite a lot, but no cord. That is why the best contact of the fisherman with the fish or the bottom can give only a cord.
The lures used in the equipment are very diverse. They are selected under certain conditions of a given season, or fish preferences. This and all kinds of beetles, larvae, worms, fish, vibro-tails, crustaceans. Very often all these baits are passive. They themselves do not play in the water. It is the fisherman who controls the wiring that should give the game to the used nozzle. Wiring is most often stepped.
Classic stepped wiring is good, but if you have imagination, you can move away from the classics and make wiring more diverse. Success in fishing will be.
Considering fishing for zander on a jig in the fall, it is worth mentioning the so-called foam rubber fish. This is an analogue of a passive bait, which can be done without difficulty at home. It takes only a little imagination, a piece of any foam and a double hook. Some fishermen catch fishing neighbors on a foam boat, standing on a boat nearby and catching on expensive and edible silicone.
Experienced fishermen know that the hottest time of the year for catching zander is autumn. Dzhigits at this time are armed with a lot of gear and go hunting for fanged. The success of fishing depends on whether there are flocks of zander. In this many advanced dzhigits the echo sounder helps, which scans the bottom and shows the fisherman the location of snags, holes and the fish itself. And how to fish for pike perch in the winter on a jig? Let's look into this issue.
Catching a zander in the winter on a jig and in other ways
In winter, pikeperch is caught from ice on several types of gear:
- balance;
- live bait;
- teetering lure.
When fishing on a balancer and spinner, a short, but elastic and powerful rod is used. The balancer is a very entertaining bait. With a sharp rise of the fishing rod up, the balancer makes a somersault - figure eight in the water - and returns to its starting point. Spoonbirds also work from the bottom and imitate fry or some kind of insect. It is lowered and with slight pauses make light jerks, thereby raising the turbidity at the bottom and luring the fish.
Fishing for live bait is carried out with the use of lanterns. Everything is simple here - the live bait clings to the hook and drops almost to the bottom. The best bait fish will be some narrow fish, since the pike perch cannot eat crucian carp and scavengers from the structure of its mouth.
Sometimes in abnormal winters or in some rivers where the water does not freeze during the cold season, zander can be caught spinning using jig baits. But in winter, zander fishing for jig is practiced. However, this method is not so actively used at this time of the year.
Spring jigging
So, we paid attention to winter fishing, fishing for zander on a jig from the ice. And here the question begs: what features are inherent in spring fishing? At this time of the year, all the same types of lures are used as in the fall, but only of a smaller size. Posting is a little more gentle and accurate, without strong jerking. Often used wiring - dragging along the bottom with pauses. In spring, zander is not as active as in autumn and winter, so often fishermen use attractants. Attractants are a kind of bait. Jig fishing lures are made of silicone. It is important to know that many manufacturers make the so-called edible silicone:
- Select
- Keitech;
- Jackall
- Fanatik.
Edible silicone baits when catching zander on a jig are needed so that the fish, attacking the target (bait), do not drop it and feel at least some taste. Manufacturers in the composition of such baits add a considerable amount of salt, additional components that create an odor. However, edible jig baits may not help. Then attractants are used. They are produced by many manufacturers. There are attractant tastes - blood, worms, fish oil. The smell is unbearable. Often, clothes stained with an attractant, you just want to burn in a fire.
Athletic fishermen respect jigging for zander for two reasons. The first is the amount of fish. If the dzhigit fisherman found a parking of a flock of pike perch, then the catch is provided, and if this is a competition, then victory is not far off. The second reason is interesting and difficult fishing. The resistance of adult zander can not be compared with anything. This is a very strong fish that does not give up until the end of the survival and raising it into the boat.
Shore and boat fishing
Coastal and boat fishing of pike perch differs only in gear and amount of catch. To fly from the shore to promising points, you need to have a long rod and a very thin cord. The disadvantage of shore fishing is that a long rod weighs more, and waving such a stick all day is a thankless task.
Fishing is greatly simplified when boating. And if there is an echo sounder, then the chances of a good trophy increase several times. When fishing from a boat, casts must be cast across the stream, posting from a smaller area to a deeper area.
Most often, fishermen - beginner dzhigits - are looking for a cluster of boats at any one point. This is the first sign that anglers have found a predator and are enjoying the successful fishing of a zander from a boat. By the way, not only beginners use this method of finding fish, but also fishermen with experience, echo sounders and with all the quirks for successful fishing. On their part, it is ugly. No need to be lazy to look for your fishing points.
It is worth mentioning fishing from a boat in a trolling track. Trolling is fishing from a motorized craft. The method is very popular, but complicated. Many fishermen think that trolling fish is easy - sit in the boat and steering wheels wherever you want, and the fish itself will be hung on hooks. In fact, this is a whole art. The choice of bait is very important. For each depth, a wobbler with a certain immersion depth is selected. The color of the bait is selected depending on the time of day. Not easy and finding fish. It is conducted with the help of an echo sounder. Speed when trolling is minimal and ranges from 3 to 5 kilometers per hour.
As a rule, the avid trolling player has a lot of lures. If an ordinary fisherman looks at the number of boxes and lures in a boat, which is sent, for example, to catch zander on a jig head, he will be very surprised.
A slightly different type of fishing is fishing on the track. This method is extremely simple. Its essence lies in the fact that the boat, sailing on oars, pulls one or a pair of gear with baits. In this way, people most often catch when moving from one point to another. In order not to waste time when moving, fishermen try to catch luck by the tail using this type of fishing.
Zander in cooking
A few centuries ago, zander was valued in ancient Russian cuisine . Both the rich and the poor ate him. And now no one refuses zander. Mistresses love him, because it is convenient to cook because of the small number of bones. In addition, the representative of perch is tasty in any dishes. He has lean, tender and healthy meat. The taste of pike perch can be compared with trout and other expensive species of fish.
Zander is one of the favorites for the content of various nutrients. It has a lot of protein, so it is recommended for athletes gaining muscle mass, and obese people who want to lose weight. It also contains a lot of iodine. This means that fish is beneficial for people with thyroid disease. Thus, catching zander on a jig head in the winter or at any other time of the year using other gear is a good thing. Thanks to this hobby, you can catch very useful fish for yourself and your family.
The number of dishes with meat of this fish is huge. This kulebyaka and ear, and fried fillet in batter, and baked pieces. Many of the hostesses know that wonderful jellied meat comes out of pikeperch meat, tasty fish cakes and many other dishes are obtained.
Pikeperch in fishing and poaching
As mentioned above, pike perch meat is tasty, healthy and inexpensive, so the fishermen try to fill the holds with this fish as much as possible. All would be nothing if not for poaching. Poachers even catch a trifle, since the cell in the networks is so small that everything falls into it. In some rivers and reservoirs they try to fight this scourge, but, as a rule, to no avail.
The usual fishing of zander for ice jig in winter, spring, summer and autumn is an interesting and productive process. Therefore, I would like to urge all anglers not to use poaching methods. It is worth protecting nature and not exterminating the inhabitants of rivers, lakes, and seas.