matching natural food

[saleen121212]

how close does the artifical bait have to be to the real thing cause lures just never match up perfectly i found one thats pretty dang close but it has a bright orange stomach and ive never seen that on a minow
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[Tarpon4me]

And you won't find an orange coloration on a minnow, but you will on a bream. Sunfish and Yellow Bellies have similar coloration.

As for a perfect match, no, it doesn't have to be a perfect match. The main things I look for are:

1. The lure needs to match the size of bait in the water. Never go bigger, if you must, go a little smaller.

2. The lure needs to be capable of diving to the depth that the bait fish are at. You can have a perfect bait, but if you can't get it where the fish are, it's not worth the 4x hooks that are strapped to it's rear end.

3. Alot of times, I feel like matching the color isn't as important as matching the size, shape, and motion of the lure. You may fish a like or river and come to realize that the most productive lure for that day is completely different than the coloration of the local forage. The biggest advantage an angler can have over fish is to realize that nothing is guarenteed. This stuff isn't rules to go by, just "guide lines." Fish are smart and cautious, you've got to learn to beat an animal at it's own game thats sole job in life is to be one of the top predators in the water. We fish a few times a month. Predatory fish do it everyday. It's hard to compete with that. [cool]
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