Ciscoe forage

[Cowboy(WY)]

I am looking for some info on ciscoes? Fishing a tourney where ciscoes are the main forage and I don't know anything about their behavior, size, shape, color etc?

When do they spawn? What cover do they prefer? or do they suspend a great deal? What cranks imitate them well? do they relate to points or bays etc?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cowboy

[Worm Dunker]

Ciscos, herring, tubilies... same fish... different name depending on where you live. They have a long and slender body shape, and are silver sided with white bellies. They school up, and suspend. Ice anglers can catch them on just about any small, shiney lures made.(They taste good too!)
They spawn in the fall. They are in the whitefish family, but are NOT whitefish.
So... what lures best imitate them? Well, any long slender baits, like the good old fashion Rapala will do. Ciscos range in size from four inches, up to the six pound some odd ounce world record. Most will average six to fourteen inches in length. They utilize areas that any other baitfish would use... in other words, most any structure will do, includeing suspending in open water areas.
GOOD LUCK