Many of national manufactures actively use beef meal, poultry meal and dried blood to produce fishing baits and groundbaits. Experimental data show that these products are attractive for fish, only if fish are familiar with them.

Some tunas such as skipjack (Katsuwonus pelamis), little tunny (Euthunnus affinis) and yellowfin (Neothunnus macropterus) respond positively to aqueous extracts of tuna flesh as well as to tuna blood (Tester et al., 1955). In contrast to these results, whole beef blood and beef blood plasma are not attractive, while whole beef blood is even repulsive perhaps due to its bright red color.

Juvenile sockeye salmon, Oncorhinchus nerka, are attracted by extracts of beef liver and beef heart, if only fish grown in these byproducts (McBride et al., 1962). Fish grown in these feeds do not respond to extracts of zooplankton, brine shrimp (Artemia salina), squids and some natural oils.

It means that the use of meat meals and dried blood in fishing baits and groundbaits needs prebating. This inevitably leads to overrunning these products, their losses and, in final sum, to the eutrophication of water bodies.

Basic References

McBride J.R., Idler D.R., Jonas R.E.E., Tomlinson N. 1962. Olfactory perception in juvenile salmon.: I. Observations on response of juvenile sockeye to extracts of foods. Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada 19, 327-334

Tester A.L., van Weel P.B., Naughton J.J. 1955. Response of tuna to chemical stimuli. Part I. In: Reaction of tunas to stimuli, 1952-1953. Special Scientific Report: Fisheries No. 130, United States Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service, 1-124