Sea Fishing Bait

LUGWORM

Lugworm are large marine worms that live in U shaped burrows in the sand or sand and mud mixes. You rarely find them in the shingle, broken shell or other locations where ragworm are sought, but you will find some ragworm in lugworm beds. You may also find other baits such as clams and even the odd shrimp left behind by the tide. Lugworms' presence on a beach or mudflat is given away by the piles or 'squiggles' of sand deposited above the burrows. The more squiggles, the more worms there are in the target beach/area. The common "blow" lugworm typically grow to 8 inches long (20 cms) and the larger worms are found in the richer marine habitats and farther down the beach... Black lugworm - the preferred lugworm bait - is only collectable at low water and in some locations only on spring tides, when the water is farthest from the shore. Blow lugworm have very soft bodies, with a hard "tail" that is filled with this sand. Black lugworm are bigger and tougher hence the angler's preference for using them.

RAGWORM

The first thing to know about ragwom is that they are predators and give sharp nips! The king ragworm can grow to over a foot long (30 cms) and you do not want to get a nip off one of those 'snakes'! There is an amazing supply of them in terribly oozy mud and sand right outside my brother's house in Baldoyle, in the estuary. We have taken lots of monster king rag out of that estuary but we stink horribly afterwards! By far the most common ragworm is the red ragworm, far smaller, unlikely to grow to more than a few inches (10 cms), but don't turn your nose up at this excellent bait. Known locally as "maddies" or harbour ragworm, they are a very effective bait when used in a bundle.