In addition to being an excellent side dish or a delicious addition to the bowl of your salad, corn can also be a tasty bait. Anglers are always looking for new baits that appeal to fish, hoping that their fishing experience will be better. So is fishing with corn illegal?
Corn is cheap and easy to buy, making it extremely convenient for anglers. Keep on reading to learn how it works as bait.
Is Fishing with Corn Illegal?
This topic is quite popular among anglers because corn is relatively easy to use. In most states, corn is a legal bait, wherever the use of bait is allowed. However, in some locations like Rhode Island, corn is considered illegal when used for fishing.
In other states like California, South Carolina, Utah, Minnesota, Maine, Colorado, Nevada, and Vermont, it’s legal to use corn as bait, but not for chumming. Corn is safe and even attractive to fish but can be harmful to the environment when it’s used in excess.
Corn isn’t poisonous to fish, although some people believe that fish can’t digest corn. However, this is not true.
In other states like New York, Virginia, Kansas, Alaska, and Washington, corn can also be used for chumming. However, chumming using corn can still damage the environment of fish, even if it’s legal. This practice should be avoided to protect the environment.
So if you’re fishing using a hook, corn can be effectively used as a healthy and legal bait. However, regardless of being legal or not, corn shouldn’t be used for chumming.
Benefits of Using Corn for Fishing
Corn can be used to attract fish because of its appealing color and edible size. Here are some benefits of using it as a bait.
- Corn cans are available for less than a dollar per can, so it’s extremely affordable.
- It’s effortless to obtain, compared to other types of bait.
- Sticking a piece of corn to the hook is relatively easy, compared to other types of baits, especially for beginner anglers. It doesn’t fight back or struggle like live bait, so it’s quite easy to use.
- It’s naturally grown, so it doesn’t contain any artificial additives or fillers.
Dangers of Using Corn for Fishing
In most cases, corn can be safely used as a bait. However, in some cases, it shouldn’t be used.
- If the fish is too small, corn will take a lot of time to be digested.
- When the fish eat too much corn, it might cause internal blockage in the intestines.
- When used for chumming, corn will damage the natural environment of the lake or river because it involves bringing foreign elements to the water body.
Can You Use Canned Corn for Fishing?
Canned corn can be used for fishing, mainly because it’s inexpensive. This means that even if you’re not that experienced, the cost of lost bait will stay relatively low. Nevertheless, canned corn kernels are too soft, so you might be losing most of them, especially when they get submerged in the water.
Bait companies have actually come up with whole kernel corn that you can use for fishing. It’s harder and longer and will stay attached to the hook when it’s submerged underwater for more extended periods.
Other Corn Alternatives
In some cases, canned corn might not be as successful as a bait. This, however, shouldn’t stop you from experimenting with other alternatives that can be extremely successful.
- Feed corn is another option. It’s also very cheap, and you can bring any amount for your upcoming fishing trip. It’s harder than canned corn, so it’s unlikely to get lost when it’s submerged in the water for extended periods. It would be best if you softened it by boiling it and letting it soak for one night before using it as a bait.
- Frozen corn is also extremely affordable. It’s softer than feed corn, but it should still be boiled before use. Boil it for a couple of minutes before use, and you’ll be able to use it as bait.
- Dough bait is another alternative to use when canned corn is not available. Dough bait can be corn flavored, so it will appeal to fish.
Which Fish Can Be Caught Using Corn?
Sweet kernel corn is one of the most favorite baits for game fish. You can use it to catch trout, crappie, and bluegill. Corn is an excellent bait, especially for beginner anglers, and if you’re going fishing with your kids. It’s easier to obtain and handle than live bait.
Corn is primarily used as a carp bait, but can also be used successfully with bream, bass, and small catfish. In some cases, it might not be as successful as cut bait, live bait, or lures, but it’s still an easy and efficient choice, especially for novice anglers.
Why Do Fish Like Corn?
Fish, mainly stocked fish, actually like corn. This is why it can be successfully used as a bait for game fish. Here are some reasons why fish prefer corn as bait.
- It resembles food pellets. Stocked fish are usually fed food pellets in the hatchery before they’re released into rivers and lakes. This is why they will be attracted to the corn kernels because they resemble the size and color of the food pellets they’re used to.
- Some fish might confuse corn kernels with fish eggs. Different types of fish prefer to feed on fish eggs, and corn kernels resemble the shape of trout eggs, tempting other fish to give them a try.
- The bright yellow color of the corn kernels is visible in the water. Lots of fish will be attracted to the kernels and will attempt to feed on them.
Wrap Up
Corn can be used as a natural bait to catch several types of fish. In most cases, it’s perfectly legal to use corn as bait, especially if you’re a beginner angler.
However, in some states, corn can’t be used as bait. Chumming is usually discouraged, legal or not, because it can damage the natural habitat of the fish.