Fishing lures, sometimes called “artificial baits”, come in many sizes, styles, colors, and patterns. The different lures are made to look like dying fish and fast moving fish. Lures are made out of wood, plastic, metal and cork and are designed to work in many different ways. Here are a few types of lures:

Jigs

Jigs have weighted metal heads and a "tail" made of animal hair, soft plastic, feathers or rubber. You may try fishing a jig with a minnow or piece of pork rind on the jig’ hook. Fishing with a jig can be used to catch nearly every kind of freshwater and many saltwater fish.

• Fish jigs slowly during all seasons, but extremely slow in cold water.
• Use a fast action medium-heavy to heavy fishing rod in the 6 1/2 foot or even longer lengths.
• Try fishing a jig at night. You may try a heavier jig, even in ultra clear water.
• Keep your hooks sharp. Sharp hooks penetrate more easily and they're harder to dislodge.
• Check your fishing line and knot periodically.
• When fishing a jig in submerged brush, hang-ups may occur. Instead of pulling and shaking to dislodge the jig, give the line some slack and shake the rod tip gently. Often the jig will fall free and get struck by a fish.

Spoons         Shop for Spoon Baits

Spoons are metal lures designed to look like a swimming baitfish. Many spoons are made to be cast. Others are meant to be trolled behind a moving boat.

Soft Baits

Soft baits are lures made to look and feel more like the real thing. Fishing these lures with or without a weight are both good options. Sometimes, plastic baits are used with a jig head, spinner or spinnerbait. Some plastic baits have scents or fish attractants added to them.

• Worms
• Crawfish
• Jerkbaits/Minnows
• Grubs
• Lizards
• Frogs
• Tubes
• Creatures

Crankbaits/Plugs

Crankbaits/Plugs are lures with a body made of plastic or wood. These lures are designed for fishing on top of the water or at depths below the surface.

• Diving Crankbaits-have lip or bill at the front of the lure designed to plane through the water and get the lure down in the water column. The diving depth of the lure can be roughly determined by the size of the bill; the bigger and longer, the deeper the lure will dive.
• Lipless Crankbaits-have no lip or bill and designed to be retrieved through the water at any desired level much like fishing with a spinnerbait.
• Jerk Baits-are slim for their length and have some type of lip to pull the lure underwater, much like a crankbait. Most jerk baits float but when pulled underwater and stopped, they remain “suspended” in the water column. This seperates them from a pure top water lure.

Spinners         Shop for Spinners

Spinners are lures that have one or more blades that spin, or revolve, around a straight wire shaft. Some spinners have tails made of soft plastic or animal hair.

Spinnerbaits         Shop for Spinner Baits

Spinnerbaits are lures with one or more blades that spin around a "safety pin"-type shaft. Most spinnerbaits have skirts made from animal hair, vinyl, rubber, or other materials.

Buzzbaits         Shop for Buzzbaits

Buzzbaits are lures much like a spinnerbait, but have a flat blade that causes the lure to rise quickly to the top, and create a disturbance along the surface like a minnow.

Poppers and Flies         Shop for Flies

Poppers and flies are small lures used with spincast and fly fishing gear. These lures are very good for panfish and other fish that feed on the surface such as trout and bass.

As you understand more about the environment fish live in and how they behave, you will learn which lures work best for specific fish during different seasons.