emerald shinners

[harry the dog]

Can they be caught this time of year?...if so how? Anyone able to keep them past may?

[chris]

I'd like to know too. Great bait.

[Cangl]

They are extremely hard to catch, most baitshop guys run some serious nets and set traps. They are not quite as hard to keep alive as spot tails or those 3 minute alwwives but tempature is really important.
Thanks to all you WC'rs on the salted minnow info it had not been for them salty dudes the Trenton would have hit me with a skunk, the bait they sold down there ;( within 1 mile of the ramp 1/2 of it was dead extra salt in the bag came in real handy. The swipers are real thick now adays!

[John Wayne]

I catch emerald shiner in the Ohio river starting about now and thru the summer. I use them on perch up Lake Erie and Crappie at other lakes. They are easy to catch and great to take care of. The ones in the Ohio river seem more durable than the Lake Erie Emerald Shiner.

John Wayne

"The world cares very little about a man who knows; it is what he is able to do that counts."

[harry the dog]

Will they go in bait traps? or only gotten with netting? Do they eat bread?

[JCarp]

On Erie, some use big custom made unbrella nets & hang a light to attract them. The nets I've seen have a square copper pipe frame. One yr at iceout, I saw a couple of guys at the Mazurik ramp (it's kinda enclosed with a 2 sided breakwall) herd them to a corner by a dock with their boat. 1st scoop with a big dip net caught tons, sucessive scoops caught less.

I routinely keep emeralds in a 55 gallon aquarium for several yrs. Temperature is usually mid 70's F. Recently, removed some common shiners from the tank to a friends yard pool (they successfully spawned & I had way too many). He took one big emerald that got beat up during the removal process & reported that it survived.

I suspect you could set up a fairly deep yard pool in a shaded area. Inch of fish per gallon is the general rule for aquariums. With a good filter setup, I can keep fish healthy at well over 2 inches per gallon. Std tropical fish food.

They thrive (grow fast) in mid 70's temp if everything else is right. They can't handle elevated ammonia levels in warm water and can't handle rapid temp changes.

So, if you set up a 300 gallon pool @ 2" per gallon your at 150 4" shiners. Go up to 3"/gallon and you have 220. 300 gallon pool is pretty big...and you have to maintain it, buy pumps/filters etc. Live box in a pond might be worth a shot. I know some Ice guides on Erie try stock up before ice and keep them in liveboxes in ponds or the lake.

Good Luck,
jc

[marcbodi]

Hi,
My Cousin keeps them in a mesh net in his pond .