Teasers will Bring More Fish to your Trolling Lure

Teasers are decoy lures, and their purpose is simply to add their 'noise' to that of the real lure.

All well-designed trolling lures make their presence known to predatory fish by creating 'noise'.

And of course, having attracted the attention of the fish, the lure must be convincing enough for the predator to take a grab at it.

But what is meant by 'noise' in this context?

And Noise?

Well, it could include ...

• Disturbance created by splashing around on the surface

• Vibrations created in the water through irregular action, and in some cases the rattling of internal steel balls

• Flashes of light and colour from polished surfaces

• Streams of bubbles (the 'smoke trail') created by plastic or feather skirts

The more of such noise trolling lures make, the greater will be their initial attraction. But a single lure can only make so much noise. Using more than one trolling lure will help, and so will teasers. Let's start with the simplest form of teaser - a 'Bird'.

Pulling a Bird

Probably the simplest and most effective thing you can do to improve your strike rate is to tow a bird astern, just ahead of your lure.

The one shown here is a 8" Unrigged 'Marlin Magic' which will need to be rigged on a short length of heavy mono with a ball bearing swivel at the front end for attachment to your main line, and a snap swivel at the other.

These splash around on the surface, causing any nearby predator to wonder what all the fuss is about, cruise over and take a look.

What he'll believe he's seeing is a small shoal of baitfish playing around, one of which is straggling off the back, away from the others. Your lure - the obvious target.

Birds can be rigged in three different ways:~

• As an integral part of your trolling line, fixed about 10 feet (3m) ahead of your trolling lure, or

• Towed on its own separate line, with your trolling line attached to it by a snap link and elastic band which will break when a fish hits, or

• similarly rigged on its own line, but completely independently of your trolling line.

A few more things to think about when rigging a bird:~

• There are teasers that operate below the surface, but a bird isn't one of them. They float, and can only be used with trolling lures that have no tendency to pull them under. Skirted lures such as straight runners and chuggers are popular choices.

• For offshore sailors using a simple handline, a bird rigged in your trolling line about 10 feet (3m) ahead of your lure will make all the difference to your catch rate. There's simply no reason not to have one. Now I'm not usually a pushy sort of a bloke, but just this once ... Get The Bird!.

• If you're trolling with a rod, then having a bird rigged integrally will be inconvenient when it arrives at your rod tip leaving your catch cruising around astern, smug in the knowledge that it's safely out of reach of the gaff.

  To get around this, tow the bird on its own line and attach your trolling line to it with a snaplink and an elastic band that will break when a fish hits.

• Alternatively, tow the bird on its own line, independent of your trolling line, but with the trolling line positioned such that the lure is working just astern of it. Never ahead, as the fish will ignore your lure and have a crack at the bird.

  One type of bird designed particularly for this application is the LuLu. Looking much like a bowling pin, the antics of one of these will raise even the largest of gamefish from the depths to have a look-see what all the fuss is about.

Hookless Lures as Teasers

These can be rigged in-line ahead of your regular trolling lure in the form of daisy chains, or on spreader bars and umbrella rigs.

Strip Teasers

Holographic Stripteaser Dredge Bar

Get your attention? These strips of tough, clear plastic are micro-embossed with Mylar which glitter and flash brightly below the surface.

They're a firm favourite of sports fisherman looking to attract tuna and billfish to their lures, either as a single strip or as an array via a dredge bar as shown here.