Guys, After comparing this to images of different bait on line, I'm not sure that it's a peanut. It looks too long and thin?

juvie herring?

looks like a baby blue back herring!!!

Ditto


looks like a baby blue back herring!!!
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Juvie herring... Can't really tell if it's atlantic, alewife, or blueback from the photo.

Did you notice if the belly scales were ridged and rough to the touch (sawbelly) or smooth?

Juvie herring... Can't really tell if it's atlantic, alewife, or blueback from the photo.

Did you notice if the belly scales were ridged and rough to the touch (sawbelly) or smooth?

All smooth and very delicate. Lots came off just by pulling the treble out of it's head.

Bay anchovie
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The best way to immediately differentiate whether you have a river or sea herring (good to know for livelining :uhuh:) is by taking your finger and drawing it from the tail to the head right along the ventral side of the fish. If it feels smooth, it's a sea herring, likely an Atlantic. If it feels rough and ridged, it's a river herring. You can feel these belly scutes in all of the anadromous herring- try it on the next pogie you snag.

Very tough to tell the difference between an alewife and a blueback- the easiest way is to bisect the fish and examine the color of the gut lining- An alewife is pink, and a blueback is black. Not recommended to do this in the line of sight of any enforcement :hidin:

From the relative thickness of the body, position of the dorsal, oversized eye, smooth belly scutes and extremely flaky scales I'd say juvenile Atlantic herring.

The best way to immediately differentiate whether you have a river or sea herring (good to know for livelining :uhuh:) is by taking your finger and drawing it from the tail to the head right along the ventral side of the fish. If it feels smooth, it's a sea herring, likely an Atlantic. If it feels rough and ridged, it's a river herring. You can feel these belly scutes in all of the anadromous herring- try it on the next pogie you snag.

Very tough to tell the difference between an alewife and a blueback- the easiest way is to bisect the fish and examine the color of the gut lining- An alewife is pink, and a blueback is black. Not recommended to do this in the line of sight of any enforcement :hidin:

From the relative thickness of the body, position of the dorsal, oversized eye, smooth belly scutes and extremely flaky scales I'd say juvenile Atlantic herring.

Thanks Jack - This was a very large school with some up to 6 inches - hanging in the corner of a jetty and beach - hopefully the bass will discover them while I'm there tonight.:devil2:

eye looks a little big for a herring. I'm thinkin baby sardine :smash:

Looks like one of the sardines we used to have up here in Maine when i was a kid. they were so thick you could dip them with a hand net.

With the scales coming off like that, I'm thinking Sardine as well.:)

They are juvenile sea herring. Also called gulf of Maine anchovy or sardine. They grow very rapidly due to the abundance of plankton in the bay
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The wife and I got plastered with those and p-nuts that were half digested on the 4th:love:

Ayuh.

Herrin
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