Mullet Run and chunking mullet or bunker tips

[cowherder]

Every day I see the adult mullet in the wash. It seems pretty easy, chop and throw on a hook. Anything more to it than that, any tips to make that bass want to commit suicide by mullet?

[bababooey]

When you chop it, fish whole if small or cut in half or thirds if bigger. The crabs and small fish will eat some, and you'll still have enough scent left to attract a bass.

[williehookem]

Hide the hook inside the mullet if its daytime.

[storminsteve]

I just throw whole ones out there. Works for me

[dogfish]

^ This is what I do. that little extra piece of meat gives you the edge. You can use half a bunker if you have enough. The big girls like it. Some info from Hatteras Outfitters:


This diagram is for a fairly large Menhaden as is the head baiting method shown. You won't get this many baits out of a 8" fish. A smaller head can be baited through the eyes without obstructing the hook setting abilities of the hook but I don't recommend it on larger heads. You just want enough of the hook in the bait (head or steak) to keep it from coming off easily, no more.

The first thing I do is whack off the head (#1). If I'm using lots of heads I will leave a little more meat on it like in the hooked head diagram or even more. If I'm going more for distance and not using heads I make what we call a gill cut first, that's where you'll end up with a little of the gills intact on that 1st steak [between #1 and #3 above].

The next cut, #2, is to whack the stomach off in one fell swoop [Menhaden bellies make fine strip baits for Flounder, Trout, Blues, Sea Mullet, Toads, etc., so don't throw them away if you can use them]. No need in wasting time cutting the stomach flaps off each steak later, plus, that's just one more step where you can damage the steak.

The first steak resulting from cut #3 will look similar to the steaked hook shown, NO FLAPS hanging down and no stomach holes to aid the current in pulling your bait down the beach!
Follow the rest of the numbers in that sequence and DO NOT let the steaked bait see water until it lands in the ocean. In fact, the bait should never sit in water period, even when whole. A cooler that drains constantly is a must for me.

Cob and larger size Mullet can be prepared similarly except for cut #7, best to leave the head whole with these.

With Finger Mullet I'll make a single angled cut from about the top of #5 behind the dorsal down to the bottom of #1 just behind the gill plate and use only that head and dorsal section for bait.
Cut up only what you need for the next hour or so, no need to cut up more than will fit in your bait box. Plus, it will start going bad anyway. Store the rest whole and covered with ice until you need it.

If bait is scarce and what you have begins to deteriorate, removing the heads and stomach sections can help delay the spoiling process. Rinsing the slim off in seawater or an icy salt brine when you first get them can also help delay the inevitable.

[baitstealer]

How about mullet, any one seen them yet? thanks guys

[hookedonbass]

I have seen them in the back of raritan bay. Some of the harbors. When you look under the lights at night look for spearing. The mullet are swimming with them, not too thick yet. About one mullet for every 500 spearing. Around 4-5 inches long.

[J Barbosa]

It's great that you are seeing a few already ^^

I usually see a ton later in the season where I go to cast net peanuts and haven't seen any yet this year.

They usually like to chase the spearing so anywhere you would find spearing is a good place to check like hookedonbass mentioned.

Lights or faster moving water like a creek mouth.

[seamonkey]

I was out a few nights this week and saw come near the bridge in ocean city. No fish for me tho.

[hookedonbass]

When you chop it, fish whole if small or cut in half or thirds if bigger. The crabs and small fish will eat some, and you'll still have enough scent left to attract a bass.

We probably have different methods of fishing. I don't like to use whole mullet because I feel the scent needs to get out there so I always cut it in half. Maybe thats just me. Not knocking you we all have our preferences. I agree the crabs are bad thieves so that is why I like to put smaller chunks and keep it moving.

[J Barbosa]

Castnet a few mullet this morning. I was only able to catch 4 of them as they are fast and only a few around and I was on a limited time frame.

The biggest one about 6" long jumped out of my bucket and got away. Then as I was rigging my kayak another one must have jumped out of the bucket because I couldn't find it???

The good news is the other three got me nice fluke as soon as they hit the bottom. Two 17.5-17.75 and a 19.

[finchaser]

^^^^ way to go. If I were younger and in better shape I'd get me one of those pointed sea going vessels

[J Barbosa]

No excuses, I'll get you out in the middle of sandy hook channel or your favorite inlet on Saturday morning. You can borrow Dark's kayak it's not like he uses it anymore.

[DarkSkies]

Mullet
I love the mullet run. I start scouting for them mid to late summer, and by this time last year I found a tidal area where they were schooled up. I also like to look in tidal creeks, because I know as they dump out of those creeks on a strong tide, the hungry predators will be waiting for them.

[paco33]

Can't wait when they start the push out into the ocean, and you can identify them by the v formation they make in the water.

[bluesdude71]

I like using live mullet for bait, but you have to be quick and accurate with the cast net. The first time I tried to net some up I got blanked. Then I learned to anticipate where they are going, and throw the net kind of in that direction. "Let the force be with you Luke", something like that.

[williehookem]

Where I fish you see the immigrants taking buckets of mullet with a cast net. They clean them right there, I think they're eating them. Guyanese or one of the spanish countries. Why would you eat mullet?

[plugcrazy]

What are mullet fish

Although many unrelated fish are called mullet, the true mullet are extremely active fish that travel in large schools.



Although many unrelated are called mullet, the true mullet are extremely active fish that travel in large schools throughout the tidal zones searching for . One of the fish from the Perciformes order, the mullets comprise the family called Mugilidae. This fish is often seen swimming in coastal areas and in some cases are the main fish found in some tropical rivers. With close to 100 species and eleven genera, the mullet is very popular with both sports and commercial fishermen due to their fighting ability, as well as, high commercial value as a tasty fish. These fish are highly adaptable to various different saline levels and have even been found in brackish water conditions.

One of the most interesting characteristics of this fish is their unique way of feeding on the tiny organisms at the bottom of their habitat. Schools of mullet have been observed in areas that are rich with plant life feeding with their bodies at a forty five degree angle to soft surface of the bottom. This is an amazing sight, making all the fish appear as if suspended from the bottom and especially since the average length of the mullet is twenty inches or better. This type of feeding has given the mullet their generic name of sucker and is accomplished as the fish sucks up the food which is strained through their gill rakers before being passed to the throat. In some species there are additional teeth under a thin layer of skin that is used like an additional filter before the food is chewed and the inorganic materials expelled. With the exception of what is eaten off the bottom of their habitat, the diet of the mullet includes mussels, insect larvae, plankton, worms, snails and other crustaceans. Some fresh water species are known to prey on other fish such as bass, walleye and pike.

The mating season for the mullet begins in the later part of spring with the male making a show of his dominance prior to mating with a female and in some species completely changing their coloring before they mate. It is not uncommon for more than one male to mate with a single female. After spawning the female will discard around 80,000 , which are coated with a jelly like adhesive, allowing them attach to any available plant life. The juveniles appear in about a week and immediately begin feeding along the bottoms. In fresh water mullet, the juveniles are often caught to raised in ponds for commerical use. Some of the more interesting of the mullet include the striped mullet, thin lipped grey mullet, thick lipped grey mullet and the golden grey mullet. The stripped mullet is found in warmer waters such as those found in the Mediterranean. This is a very popular food fish that will commonly weigh in at around seventeen pounds. The thick lipped grey mullet is a migratory fish that is often found in small schools around the Iceland and Scandinavian coast. The thin lipped grey mullet prefers to make its home around Norway’s southern coast and in the Mediterranean Ocean. The golden gray mullet, is so named for its interesting coloration, favors the waters in the area around the Canary Islands. The genus M. curema is the mullet most often found on either coast of the United States. Although the main predator of the mullet is man, another that is known to migrate just to feed on this fish is the barracuda.

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