Everybody talks about meal worms and wax worms for ice fishing, and now I heard a guy talking about 'spikes'. What's the difference here? I've used meal worms before, big yellow nasty suckers. Wax worms look slightly smaller and lighter in color but I've never used them. And I have no idea what a 'spike' is. Anybody? What's the difference between the three? When do you use which and why? Thanks in advance for any input.
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you forgot about mousies and corn borers..its the size thats the differece,,,spikes and cornborers are the smallest grubs...when you need to go small on the jig these are the ticket..mousies a lillte biger with a tail wax worms a meal worms for the larger jigs..never know weather they want smaller or bigger..up to you to figure out...good luck
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If I'm not mistaken, spikes are the nice term for magots and they are the smallest of the three.
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although they look alot like maggots..there not slimmy and there skin is alot tougher..have used them alot..there definitly not maggots..but cant tell you exactally were they come from.
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I have nothing against live bait but I find it largely unnecessary. If you can get on to a small jig in a color that the fish you are after have a preference for then you can have awesome success. You will catch more fish if you don't have to bait the hook every time.
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i gotto see you try that..ice fishing for bluegills or pearch.i havnt had much luck that way myself
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Wow! Thanks for all the info guys. Now the question is, where can I get them? I only ever see crawlers and mealies at Cabelas, Sportsmans, and my local Maverick.
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Try PetSmart for the waxies.
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Sportsman's wherhouse has a good collection of meal worms, wax worms and maggots.
Dick's sporting goods has wax worms as well as a few convenience stores. Once you find them, it is good to buy a few extras. I hate trying to find them at the last minute. I have found they can make a big difference between a successful fishing trip and getting skunked.
Make sure to keep them cold. I left some meal worms out of the fridge for a few weeks and they all morphed into beetles.
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Meal worms are a beetle larvae found in waste grain
Wax worms are a bee moth larvae that infest bee hives
Spikes are fly larvae (maggots)
Eurolarvae are red, blue and creme colored spikes
Mousies are another type of fly larvae
Each one of these baits have different attracting qualities. I believe spikes are the most hardy, have a good scent and wiggle enticingly when hooked lightly. I have caught everything from panfish to lake trout on them. Wax worms are wimpy but have a good scent trail and are my second choice for panfish and trout. Meal worms are fairly hardy but don't seem to wiggle much when they get dunked in ice water. I don't use them very much since I alway seem to do better with the other baits.
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