Bream is a deep-bodied shoal fish. It’s not everybody’s favorite; however, feeling the thump of a massive slab of bream is an intensely satisfying feeling. It’s one of the primary reasons why anglers would want to know how to catch bream and the top bream fishing techniques.
Regardless of the size, bream is an easy target and catch. It’s not fussy in terms of bait, plus it can be caught using various methods. Still, it pays to do a decent amount of research to increase your chances of landing the fish!
How to Catch Bream
You’ll be surprised how these tips and tactics can be so effective:
Give a Belly Boat a Try
Trophy bream won’t just hide within a dense cover, huge ones can also be found in waters where water vehicle access is hard or totally non-existent.
A belly boat will provide you with the means to sample such waters. Because they are most likely lightly fished, they often harbor populations of jumbo fish that are larger than normal.
Place a belly boat on your small backpack along with a tackle box or bag filled with sinkers, hooks, jigs, bobbers, etc. Use a rod and reel setup that’s ultralight.
Fish at the Right Time
When the summer months are fast-approaching, it’s a good idea to start learning how to catch bream at night.
More species of fish, including catfish and bluegill, will feed at night during summer, especially in some waters. Are you wondering how to catch bream on bait? Don’t use a bobber. Make use of a split shot in carrying your bait down.
Keep your finger on the line so you can detect the bite while you are tightlining. What size hook for bream would be most appropriate? We would recommend anywhere between number 4/0 and 2/0 hook size. You can also fish on topwater frog lures such as small spinnerbaits.
You can try fishing from sunset to sunrise as you may have more luck then. Bream are crepuscular feeders. They become active from dusk to dawn. If you can, get out before the sun rises as that will most likely be when the feeding happens. Search for structure, drop-offs, and weed beds in depths 3 to 8 ft.
Fish as Quietly as You Can
Small bream can tolerate a good amount of water disturbance like a paddle hitting against your boat, a squeaky boat seat, or a fallen tackle box (which no one wants).
However, the bigger fish, ones that are more than 9 inches long, won’t abide even a slight commotion. Detecting the first sign of danger, they’ll disappear and won’t come back for a long time.
If what you want is heavy bream, then be especially sensitive to noise and distractions. It’s best if you have a pair of shoes that have soft soles if you’ll fish from an inflatable pontoon boat.
Make sure that your gear is arranged carefully so there’s also a small chance of you creating noise and disturbance. Remember to fish slowly and to be as quiet as possible.
Head Inland
In the United States and Europe, more people are interested in learning how to catch bream as they’re where various species of fish are found.
Head inland and find shallow and still lakes, ponds, and rivers where bream are most common. Different bream species in the US are present in waters through the Midwest all the way to Canada. European bream, on the other hand, are common in Scotland, Wales, and England.
Look for bodies with water with lots of coves and switch-backs as they’re often great for feeding. Reedy and weedy ponds and lakes are also some of the most common habitats of bream regardless of the variety. Anywhere with sun-filled, shallow water and lots of cover will most likely have bream in it.
Avoid Currents
Although the fish like having water and wind currents sweep their food towards them, the fish like positioning themselves outside the currents if they are feeding.
Shallow coves that are protected from waves and wind are often where bream are when they are spawning. Check out the little coves and still places where the fish like feeding.
Look for an Area with Structure Close to a Ledge
Look for a calm area of water that has favorable cover for bream from above. European bream feed in the bottom.
They are less likely identifiable from above; however, they still favor what American bream favor as the environment.
Fish from April to June
Bream spawn during late spring. This means the months April to June are excellent for bagging heavy bream.
Whenever they are spawning, bream like sandy and gravel bottoms but they still spawn even on muddy bottoms that are covered in silt if there is no gravel or sand that’s available.
If you have been fishing for a while but you still want to know more about how to catch bream, you may know bream have an odor when they spawn.
The odor is something like a mix of fresh fish and watermelon or some other fruit. This smell is great as it helps you find where fish are as soon as you’ve determined the cover, current, and water temperature conditions are right.
Learn the Intricacies of the Species
There are species of bream that prefer a certain kind of cover. Redbreast sunfish, for example, like hugging the bottom.
To be more effective at bream fishing, take advantage of your local bait shop’s expertise. Talk to the people who are familiar with bream fishing around the area.
Seasoned anglers like keeping their best spots for bream fishing; however, you may find some people who are willing to share with you good information on the topic.
Conclusion
Bream fishing is an excellent family activity. As a matter of fact, the species is popular for teaching kids how to fish.
Larger bream, however, will put up a fight, which excites seasoned anglers. Remember the tips in this article and enjoy an abundant catch of bream!
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