Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Tempting the bigguns: Economy of scales?

I watched an exciting alligator gar video the other day which detailed how to tempt & hook a giant fish (in this case, well over 200 lbs!). One recommendation struck me was how the angler would scale the already dead bait so as to make it softer & more palatable to the gar, which typically carry prey off and chew a bit before swallowing.

So I got to thinking about using live bait for LMB, particularly lunkers. Would scaling the live prey fish make it more palatable to LMB? Less likely to be rejected? I know bass don't exactly chew their prey, but they will reject them if something isn't right.

Anybody tried this technique? Thoughts?

Condello's assertion for pre-soaking fish feed is/was that the fish will take more to something with a mushy texture vs. something dry and hard.

We've all watched various fish spit out a feed pellet and not take it in again.

The spotted gar (30" long) at our place do not capture forage like LMB. Instead, they grab it in their long jaws and stay clamped down for an extended period. They then release the fish while trying to throw it down their gullet. You can actually feel them throw the bait and re-grab it when fishing with nylon rope as your lure.

The closest analogy that I have observed in nature is the way a heron eats a fish!

We used to catch what I think were spotted gar in northern Michigan after dark, using 3 to 5 inch prey fish on a private lake. Loads of fun! I don't think we ever caught one that reached 3 feet in length, quite unlike the gigantic alligator gar.

We never got any LMB or SMB on them, though. Not sure why!

Gar eat like alligators.