What do Zander eat?

[binka]

This is just a point of interest really and nothing by way of matter of fact.

I've read one or two posts in another thread which indicated that Zander mainly eat dying or dead fish and whilst I've caught Z's on deadbaits my overall experience has been the opposite, with livebaits being consistently better on all three of my Zander waters.

Which ties in with the whole predatory instinct and 'thrill of the chase' ethos for me.

The thing with deadbaits is that they are convenient, you don't have to catch 'em first and they are allowed on many waters where livebaits aren't and I think that's why they account for so many fish, and not forgetting the easy meal.

One thing's for sure, of all the fish that I will never sum up in respect of baits the Zander will likely always be top of the list.

I didn't want to pervert the other thread by asking the question there and all opposing opinions respectfully received, so what do you think?

 

[rich66]

I suppose like all predators they’ll pick up the odd corpse, but I can’t see it being their staple diet.
They are reasonably small mouthed but with a strong jaw. So small fish & invertebrates will be the target. Minnow, Gudgeon, stickleback , small roach, rudd etc
Again the weak, the infirm, genetically deformed or diseased will be the easiest of prey. But again it’ll only form a % of their diet.
Even thought they have been here for a while their environmental niche is so very young in our waterways it’s impossible IMHO to realise their impact on indigenous small fish and invertebrates.

Personally I think they are a predator we can do well without

 

[sam vimes]

The only one I've ever seen ate a halibut pellet.

 

[Tee-Cee]

Can someone tell me if the use of 'live baits' in England is totally banned, or is it down to by-laws??

(I'm not questioning the use of such. I would just like to know, should I wish use one for perch fishing)

Apologies to the OP for cutting across his thread!!

 

[thecrow]

Even thought they have been here for a while their environmental niche is so very young in our waterways it’s impossible IMHO to realise their impact on indigenous small fish and invertebrates.

It may not take as long to see what the results of them being in a water as you think, 2 waters near me have good stocks of them while they also maintain good stocks of prey fish, its the other predators that suffer as they all feed on the same prey, the biomass of different predators will change but settle down and find its level fairly quickly, its when anglers interfere by removing sizable predators ( this is not a cross over from another thread) that the space left will be filled by more but smaller predators that things go haywire.

What will Zander eat? anything the same as other fish, I have often read that they wont eat sea deadbaits which is rubbish I have caught them on sand eel and my biggest came to half a Mackerel intended for pike, lots of incidents of predators being caught on none fish bait can be found, wasn't the current Zander record caught from the Severn on Halibut pellets?

When they were first introduce to the relief channel in the 60s anglers were up in arms with all sorts of ridiculous claims about them being a devil fish, despite this the silver fish fishing on all the waters where I know Zander are present is very good, waters need predators to control the numbers of silver fish or the water will become over run with hoards of small fish.

 

[thecrow]

Can someone tell me if the use of 'live baits' in England is totally banned, or is it down to by-laws??

(I'm not questioning the use of such. I would just like to know, should I wish use one for perch fishing)

Apologies to the OP for cutting across his thread!!

As far as I know it is down to bye laws and fishery owners/clubs, on the new club I have joined only sea baits are allowed.

 

[steve2]

My best Zander fell to wobbled sprat. This surprise fish came from the Suffolk Stour a river that was never stocked but if I remember right was topped up with water from the Great Ouse. So I assume it came down the pipe line.
The only rule covering live bait is that the fish must be caught from the water they are used in.

 

[chrissh]

I laved I Canada for a few years and we would fish for Walleye/Zander on the lakes. Most of the time it would be Trolling a lure from a boat or jigging.

Other time from the shore of the lakes it would be float and live bait and night crawlers which is a worm a bit lie our earthworm but more redder in colour and they can be submerged under water for long periods, so it was mainly moving or live baits.

Never had a lot of luck with dead or static baits

Can’t say as to this country I have never caught one here.

 

[S-Kippy]

Depends on the water,head of zander and availibility of baitfish I think. Generally speaking sea deads are not the first choice of many zander anglers though they will certainly take them. On Bury Hill my banker bait would always be a roach [head or tail] but they will happily take sardine,sprat,smelt,mackerel sections etc. Depends on their mood down there.

When it was allowed on OBH livebait was the way to go so I'm told. I dont know because I didn't fish it during those days.

On other waters [so I've read] you are virtually wasting your time fishing a sea deadbait. On the Thames its livies all the way apparently....not tried it yet but people who do fish for them successfully say that anything other than a livebait is a waste of time....and a small livebait too.

I've always thought of them as scavengers so I dont feel particularly disadvantaged by being restricted to dead baits but that is only based on my experiences on one water.

 

[Bob Hornegold]

Can someone tell me if the use of 'live baits' in England is totally banned, or is it down to by-laws??

(I'm not questioning the use of such. I would just like to know, should I wish use one for perch fishing)

Apologies to the OP for cutting across his thread!!

Bylaw or Fishery/Club Rule.

You can only use live baits caught from the fishery you are fishing and a maximum of 15 baits (check max size on EA website)

Bob

 

[Bob Hornegold]

I have caught quite a few Zs by design and when Pike or Perch fishing, they much prefere live bait, especially skimmer bream, although I have caught them on everything from Gudgeon to small Perch, often they cough up lots of Crayfish parts !!

Bob

 

[S-Kippy]

Bylaw or Fishery/Club Rule.

You can only use live baits caught from the fishery you are fishing and a maximum of 15 baits (check max size on EA website)

Bob

Which clearly fits in nicely with the debate rattling around on another thread.....and also with the "ban" on unlicensed transfer of fish between waters which I think most people will be aware of.

That said the taking of livebait is another situation which, though legal, is likely to prompt a generally negative response on most waters. I say most because on waters where predator fishing dominates I suspect it wouldn't raise an eyebrow.

 

[Bob Hornegold]

Which clearly fits in nicely with the debate rattling around on another thread.....and also with the "ban" on unlicensed transfer of fish between waters which I think most people will be aware of.

That said the taking of livebait is another situation which, though legal, is likely to prompt a generally negative response on most waters. I say most because on waters where predator fishing dominates I suspect it wouldn't raise an eyebrow.

S, you are quite correct, it most certainly would not raise an eyebrow, there is an argument that said its only doing what nature does and the banning of live baiting is the thin edge of the wedge, this was successfully argued the last time it raised it head and the EA set the new rules !!

Bob

 

[Ray Roberts]

I fished Bury Hill last week and much to my and the captors surprise he had an 11lb zander on a 8mm pellet, fairly lip hooked too.


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[Bob Hornegold]

Well done Ray, Zander are my bogey species and I have never had a double, lots of 9s, but never made it over that line !!

Bob

 

[Ray Roberts]

Well done Ray, Zander are my bogey species and I have never had a double, lots of 9s, but never made it over that line !!

Bob

Wasn't me that had it Bob, I wish it had of been, it was my neighbour on the lake. Skippy fishes the other main lake for Zander in the winter. It was just a bit surprising that it took a pellet. Maybe they are an abundant food source for them?

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[binka]

It was just a bit surprising that it took a pellet.

It's certainly not an isolated case, iirc the former record from the Severn took a pellet intended for other species and just last night the owners of my new club water were telling me about a chap who, yesterday, landed a 16lb Pike which also too a pellet.

I wonder if it's just the heavy fish scent?

It just seems such an insignificant snack to fish of the size in each case we've mentioned so far...