Editing Angling (section)

===Natural baits===
[[File:Eristalis tenax larva close.JPG|thumb|100px|The [[rat-tailed maggot]] is a popular fish bait]]
Natural baits are food items that are present within the target fish's natural diet, which are usually animals at a lower [[trophic level]] in the [[food web]]. A natural bait angler, with few exceptions, will use a common prey species of the target fish as a bait. The natural bait used may be [[live food]] (known as a ''[[live bait (fishing)|live bait]]'') or [[Wiktionary:carcass|carcass]] (i.e. ''dead bait''), and a bait improvised from grossly intact portions of a dead animal (e.g. [[fish head]]) is known as a ''cutbait''.  Common natural baits for both fresh and saltwater fishing include [[earthworm]], [[leech]], insects and [[larva]]e, [[minnow]], [[squid]], [[prawn]], [[crayfish]], and even crabs, frogs and [[salamander]]s. Natural baits are effective due to the real texture, odour and movements of the bait presented.

The [[common earthworm]] is a universal live bait for freshwater angling, and [[grub (larva)|grub]]s and [[maggots]] are also excellent bait when [[trout fishing]]. [[Grasshopper]]s, [[cricket (insect)|cricket]]s, [[eels]] and even [[ant]]s are also used as bait for trout in their season, although many anglers believe that [[red caviar|trout or salmon roe]] is superior to any other bait.

[[File:Pimephales promelas2.jpg|thumb|right|[[Fathead minnow]] — a common [[bait fish]]]]
Crayfish, which are preyed upon by a variety of [[ray-finned fish]]es,<ref name="Web 2002">{{cite web | last=Web | first=Animal Diversity | title=Kids' Inquiry of Diverse Species, ''Orconectes propinquus'', northern clearwater crayfish: INFORMATION | website=BioKIDS | date=2002-09-16 | url=http://www.biokids.umich.edu/critters/Orconectes_propinquus/ | access-date=2018-07-27}}</ref> are also commonly used as bait, either live or with only the tail meat. They are popular for catching [[catfish]],<ref>{{cite web | last=Samsel | first=Jeff | title=5 Great Catfish Baits | website=Game & Fish | date=2005-08-05 | url=https://www.gameandfishmag.com/editorial/5-great-catfish-baits/245174 | access-date=2021-02-13 | archive-date=2021-11-08 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108152833/https://www.gameandfishmag.com/editorial/5-great-catfish-baits/245174 | url-status=dead }}</ref> [[largemouth bass]], [[smallmouth bass]], [[striped bass]],<ref name="Bass Fishing Gurus 2015">{{cite web | title=Striped Bass Feeding Facts and Information | website=Bass Fishing Gurus | date=2015-03-04 | url=https://bassfishing-gurus.com/striped-bass-feeding-facts-and-information/ | access-date=2018-07-27}}</ref> [[perch]] and [[Esox|pike]].<ref name="Funny Fishing Tshirts & Fishing Gifts - Fish Face 2017">{{cite web | title=The Key to Locating Bass, Walleye or Pike | website=Funny Fishing Tshirts & Fishing Gifts – Fish Face | date=2017-08-25 | url=https://www.fishface.com/-fishing-hunting-outdoor-blog/locating-bass-walleye-pike-with-crayfish | access-date=2018-07-27 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180727212242/https://www.fishface.com/-fishing-hunting-outdoor-blog/locating-bass-walleye-pike-with-crayfish | archive-date=27 July 2018 | url-status=dead }}</ref> However, studies had confirmed that introducing crayfish outside of their [[home range]] has led to various ecological problems of them becoming [[invasive species]].<ref>{{cite book |chapter-url=http://dnr.state.il.us/orep/ctap2/Chp%205.pdf |chapter=Fox and Des Plaines Rivers Watershed |title=Critical Trends in Illinois Ecosystems |publisher=[[Illinois Department of Natural Resources]] |year=2001 |access-date=2021-08-27 |archive-date=2009-03-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327041058/http://dnr.state.il.us/orep/ctap2/Chp%205.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.state.tn.us/twra/pdfs/aquaticplan.pdf |title=Tennessee Aquatic Nuisance Species Management Plan |author=Tennessee Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force |year=2007 |publisher=[[Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency]]}}</ref> Transporting crayfish as live bait has also contributed to the spread of [[zebra mussel]]s, which are known to attach themselves onto crayfish, in various waterways throughout Europe and North America.<ref name=HaGov>{{cite web|title=Hawaii Risk Analyses and Management for Dreissenid Mussels|url=https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/ais/files/2014/02/Hawaii-Dreissena-Mussel-Assessment-2012.pdf |page=3|publisher=US Fish & Wildlife|date=2012|access-date=27 July 2018}}</ref><ref name="Nonindigenous Aquatic Species 2005">{{cite web | title=zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) – Species Profile | website=Nonindigenous Aquatic Species | date=2005-11-16 | url=https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.aspx?speciesID=5 | access-date=2018-07-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://sfbay.wr.usgs.gov/benthic_eco/exotic_species/next.html |title=The History and Effects of Exotic Species in San Francisco Bay |author1=J. Thompson |author2=F. Parchaso |author3=A. Alpine |author4=J. Cloern |author5=B. Cole |author6=O. Mace |author7=J. Edmunds |author8=J. Baylosis |author9=S. Luoma |author10=F. Nichols |publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]] |date=13 December 2007 |access-date=27 August 2021 |archive-date=1 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130701135651/http://sfbay.wr.usgs.gov/benthic_eco/exotic_species/next.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

====Spreading diseases====
[[File:Cercopagidae GLERL 1.jpg|thumb|[[Fishhook waterflea]] (''Cercopagis pengoi''), an [[invasive species|invasive]] predatory [[cladoceran]] associated with bait fishing]]
{{see also|Fish diseases and parasites}}
The capture, transportation and culture of [[bait fish]] can spread damaging organisms between [[ecosystem]]s, endangering them. In 2007 several American states enacted regulations designed to slow the spread of fish diseases, including [[viral hemorrhagic septicemia]], by bait fish.<ref>{{Cite web |title=DNR Fishing Regulation Changes Reflect Disease Management Concerns with VHS |url=http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0%2C1607%2C7-153-10371_10402-170245--%2C00.html |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081214010208/http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0%2C1607%2C7-153-10371_10402-170245--%2C00.html |archivedate=December 14, 2008 |website=www.michigan.gov}}</ref> Because of the risk of transmitting ''[[Myxobolus cerebralis]]'' (whirling disease), [[trout]] and [[salmon]] should not be used as bait.

Anglers may increase the possibility of contamination by emptying bait buckets into fishing venues and collecting or using bait improperly. The transportation of fish from one location to another can break the law and cause the [[introduced species|introduction of fish]] alien to the ecosystem.