Maggots sometimes smell bad
- Thread starter fishperch
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peter crabtree
AKA Simon, 1953 - 2022 (RIP)
Go to your tackle shop and buy a maggot riddle. Then to a supermarket and buy a steel wire fine sieve and a bag of maize meal. Find a bowl or vessel that fits beneath your riddle.
Pour smelly maggots into the seive and shake off the pis@ stained maize they came in. Pour them onto the riddle and leave the live ones to drop into your bowl. All the dead ones and casters will remain in the riddle.
Feed the birds.
Stick in a teaspoon full of maize meal in with the live maggots and store them in the fridge.
I recycle all my maggots like this and if any are left over I put them in a plastic bag and freeze them.
You can put some flavouring in before freezing them.
Use them later as margin bait or mixed in with groundbait...
Pour smelly maggots into the seive and shake off the pis@ stained maize they came in. Pour them onto the riddle and leave the live ones to drop into your bowl. All the dead ones and casters will remain in the riddle.
Feed the birds.
Stick in a teaspoon full of maize meal in with the live maggots and store them in the fridge.
I recycle all my maggots like this and if any are left over I put them in a plastic bag and freeze them.
You can put some flavouring in before freezing them.
Use them later as margin bait or mixed in with groundbait...
Right..sorry to labour the point about frozen maggots but I have a couple of thoughts that I cannot prove but I believe to be true.
1 For some reason casters often pick up the better fish. I think somehow that frozen deads do the same. I don't know why because you would have thought live wriggly ones would be more attractive.
2 It may be that freezing breaks down cellular structure because defrosted maggots seem to so much softer. Old school matchmen used to breed special maggots (gozzers I think) that were soft and deemed to be superior at times.
3. With casters and soft defrosted deads it may be nothing to do with taste or feel of course. It might just be that they are more bouyant and counteract the hook weight enough to fool older wiser and bigger fish?
Whatever the reason, they do work even for predatory species like perch and chub. Anyone with thoughts on this?
1 For some reason casters often pick up the better fish. I think somehow that frozen deads do the same. I don't know why because you would have thought live wriggly ones would be more attractive.
2 It may be that freezing breaks down cellular structure because defrosted maggots seem to so much softer. Old school matchmen used to breed special maggots (gozzers I think) that were soft and deemed to be superior at times.
3. With casters and soft defrosted deads it may be nothing to do with taste or feel of course. It might just be that they are more bouyant and counteract the hook weight enough to fool older wiser and bigger fish?
Whatever the reason, they do work even for predatory species like perch and chub. Anyone with thoughts on this?
MRWELL
Well-known member
I once used the maggots that smelt of ammonia and my catch rate improved 
...something different i guess.
...something different i guess.
When you get home after fishing:
Take the maggots out of the bait box and place in a large tray (Sensas make 2 sizes, both excellent)
Then, riddle the maggots twice to ensure that there is no left over maize meal.
Place the riddled maggots into a second (clean and dry) tray, and add a little fresh maize meal, and place in the fridge. Don't cover the top of the tray.
Every day riddle the maggots off again and add fresh maize meal if necessary.
I try to get mine from the shop on 'delivery day' which in my area is Friday.
They should last approx. 900 degree-hours if bought fresh.
So, kept in a fridge at 5 degrees they should last (if riddled and kept clean) for about 7 days without smelling of ammonia.
As for caster: I keep mine in ordinary bait boxes with a plastic sheet cut to fit the top plus about 3 inches over. Place the plastic sheet onto the top of the box then fix the lid. Keep in the fridge but give them an hour a day without the plastic sheet.
The above has worked well for me; I used to import a lot of maggot and caster (every second Friday) when I lived in Norway both for sale and for my personal use. These methods never let me down and I always had good fresh bait.
Take the maggots out of the bait box and place in a large tray (Sensas make 2 sizes, both excellent)
Then, riddle the maggots twice to ensure that there is no left over maize meal.
Place the riddled maggots into a second (clean and dry) tray, and add a little fresh maize meal, and place in the fridge. Don't cover the top of the tray.
Every day riddle the maggots off again and add fresh maize meal if necessary.
I try to get mine from the shop on 'delivery day' which in my area is Friday.
They should last approx. 900 degree-hours if bought fresh.
So, kept in a fridge at 5 degrees they should last (if riddled and kept clean) for about 7 days without smelling of ammonia.
As for caster: I keep mine in ordinary bait boxes with a plastic sheet cut to fit the top plus about 3 inches over. Place the plastic sheet onto the top of the box then fix the lid. Keep in the fridge but give them an hour a day without the plastic sheet.
The above has worked well for me; I used to import a lot of maggot and caster (every second Friday) when I lived in Norway both for sale and for my personal use. These methods never let me down and I always had good fresh bait.
its normally early doors sunday fishing for me so bait is bought on saturday late afternoon took straight home and as im lucky enough to find space in my junk room sorry garage they go straigght into a cat litter tray perfect width and holds a couple of pints well at least cats are good for something i hate the little sh**s oh but they are riddled off first
andy
andy
Laurie Harper
Well-known member
Porridge oats are great for stopping them from smelling and keeping them dry. They absorb large amounts of moisture - much more than maize flour, etc.
symonh2000
Well-known member
I have never really noticed any difference in my catch rates between fresh and smelly maggots.
The only difference is that when they are wet and sweaty they climb out of the tub.
The only difference is that when they are wet and sweaty they climb out of the tub.
laguna
Well-known member
Maize flour, sawdust, bran etc. is obviously not provided for maggots to eat only to keep them dry/odour free and convenient for the angler to handle.
In wound treatments (maggot therapy) the larvae feed on dead tissue and cellular debris found in necrotic wounds, and secrete proteolytic (Proteolysis is the breakdown of proteins into smaller polypeptides or amino acids.) enzymes. The maggots also assist in killing bacteria through a number of mechanisms including bacteriocidal byproducts of the larval gut, and chemical secretions that change the pH of their feed.
Commercially available species are sold by the vial. The vial comes with gauze and sterile food containing soy protein and brewer’s yeast, and the eggs will hatch within 12 hours of preparation. (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, otherwise known as brewers yeast.)
Q> is it possible to fatten maggots with soy protein and brewers yeast?
A> Yes
Might give you some ideas what else you could use instead of maize meal, and you never know it could make your maggots a lot more tasty!
In wound treatments (maggot therapy) the larvae feed on dead tissue and cellular debris found in necrotic wounds, and secrete proteolytic (Proteolysis is the breakdown of proteins into smaller polypeptides or amino acids.) enzymes. The maggots also assist in killing bacteria through a number of mechanisms including bacteriocidal byproducts of the larval gut, and chemical secretions that change the pH of their feed.
Commercially available species are sold by the vial. The vial comes with gauze and sterile food containing soy protein and brewer’s yeast, and the eggs will hatch within 12 hours of preparation. (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, otherwise known as brewers yeast.)
Q> is it possible to fatten maggots with soy protein and brewers yeast?
A> Yes
Might give you some ideas what else you could use instead of maize meal, and you never know it could make your maggots a lot more tasty!
Keith Speer
Well-known member
Very interesting Laguna, Thanks for that, it answers a question that has been in my mind for years.
When I was a youngster, we holidayed in Wales and I used to help this old Welsh hill farmer (who was strangely named "Uncle") with various jobs around the farm.
One thing I well remember is going out onto the mountain to check up on the sheep, on several occasions we found sheep that had maggoty wounds, Uncle would sniff the wound, then he would either leave it alone or pour something that smelled like Turpentine over the maggots to remove them.
I never understood why the wounds would not become infected thereafter, but your post has shed some light.
As for smelly Maggots, why not wash them, that is what I do, a quick wash in warm water, then dry them with a old towel and then add fresh dry sawdust, after that riddle the Maggots to remove damp sawdust, add fresh sawdust and the job is a goodun!!
I did write a piece about Maggots, which probably answers most of the questions you ever have about Maggots and how to get the best from them which I sent to the Fishing Magic editor, I suspect he will publish it at some time, so I won't insert sections of it on here!!
But feel free to PM me and I will try and answer all your queries.
When I was a youngster, we holidayed in Wales and I used to help this old Welsh hill farmer (who was strangely named "Uncle") with various jobs around the farm.
One thing I well remember is going out onto the mountain to check up on the sheep, on several occasions we found sheep that had maggoty wounds, Uncle would sniff the wound, then he would either leave it alone or pour something that smelled like Turpentine over the maggots to remove them.
I never understood why the wounds would not become infected thereafter, but your post has shed some light.
As for smelly Maggots, why not wash them, that is what I do, a quick wash in warm water, then dry them with a old towel and then add fresh dry sawdust, after that riddle the Maggots to remove damp sawdust, add fresh sawdust and the job is a goodun!!
I did write a piece about Maggots, which probably answers most of the questions you ever have about Maggots and how to get the best from them which I sent to the Fishing Magic editor, I suspect he will publish it at some time, so I won't insert sections of it on here!!
But feel free to PM me and I will try and answer all your queries.
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We would love to publish it but not recieved at this end Keith! Mail should be to: editor@fishingmagic.com
laguna
Well-known member
I'll look forward to that Keith!
Keith M
Well-known member
That's exactly what I have done too since the 1970's (before a match anyway) and it Improves my bait confidence no end.
I'm looking forward to reading your article Keith
Keith (BoldBear)