Mud Minnows vs. Finger Mullet

I know finger mullet are great but in an attempt to save time chasing bait, how well do mud minnows work in comparison? If I can save an hour scouting for bait and go straight to fishing it may be worth buying a couple dozen mud minnows from the bait store. Amy thoughts?

Get a minnow trap and a can of cheap cat food, put it in the right place and you can catch 200 in 10 minutes! Don’t get a plastic trap - they wont go near it.

Do you prefer minnows over mullet?

yes! they are easier to keep alive and they are a lively bait

Depends on what I am fishing and where I am fishing and also what time of year.

Early in the year when finger mullet are not “finger” size yet, I like mud minnows for trout and spottail. Hard to beat the peanut menhaden though that time of year though. If I am fishing for flounder where there are not alot of rocks, but mainly sandy or mud bottom, then I prefer mudminnows. When the finger mullet are here from now until late fall, I prefer using about a 5" finger mullet. Just remember to not hook the mouth closed so it can breath! Don’t have to worry about that with a mudminnow as I think it is almost impossible to kill them! I like the FM around rocks becasue they will not swim into the holes or try to hide under the rocks like the mudminnows will, thus not as many hang ups. I also like the FM in the fall as it tends to weed out the smaller spottails. Want to catch BIG trout, use a 6"FM or bigger!

Early in the year, mudminnows or peanut menhaden.
Later in the year, finger mullet and shrimp.

If you have a good MM hole and can get a crab, take the back off and step on it and use it for bait! :wink:

Yeah, I know they are easier to keep alive. They would probably stay alive half of the day on the floor of the boat. Do you set the trap in a muddy area? Oyster bed?

I like to set the trap in a creek mouth that almost goes dry on a falling tide. The minnows have to come out with the fall! That’s also a good spot to fish. The predator fish will hang out there waiting for the food to come running out

Thanks for the tips

mud minnows seem to out last finger mullet for me…

“If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die, I want to go where they went.”
Will Rogers