Fishing with jelly and soft lures has become increasingly popular over the last few years. This is because jelly lures are extremely lifelike and can be a very effective way of fishing for predatory species such as bass, pollock, wrasse, coalfish and mackerel all being caught on this type of lure.
The main types of jelly lures used by anglers across the British Isles are summarised below. For the article looking at how to use jelly and soft lures click here.
Eel Style Jelly Lures: One of the most popular types of jelly lure are eel style lures. These are designed to resemble small sandeel type creatures and are highly rated for pollock fishing, although they will catch all other predatory species as well. The Eddystone Eel Company is one of the most famous names in this area, with their lures accounting for ten world record fish since they appeared on the market in 1973. Eel style soft lures come in almost any colour imaginable. Often red is seen as the best colour for pollock, but anglers often experiment with other colours until they find one which works for them.
Jelly Worm Lures: Jelly worms are another popular design. These look just like a worm but have a curled tail (for this reason they are sometimes referred to as curl tail worms). This tail provides an extremely realistic side-to-side action when dragged through the water which attracts all manner of fish. Some jelly worms (also known as grubs) are short and thicker bodied, and are generally around 3 – 4 inches long, whereas other jelly eels are longer at around six inches and much thinner. Jelly eels can be any colour, with many having a different coloured tail section. Jelly worms are often fitted with a jig head to provide weight for casting (see below).
Weedless Lures: These are a type of lure in which the hookpoint is embedded within the lure. This allows the lure to be dragged through areas which are thick with weed and kelp where species such as pollock are likely to be found. However, due to the soft body of the lure, any fish taking the lure into its mouth will still become hooked. Weedless lures have become increasingly popular in recent years, with anglers able to target fish in weed beds and other areas thick with marine vegetation which would have previously been unfishable due to the amount of lures which would have been lost to snags.
Shads: These are a type of jelly lure which is designed to resemble a small fish. While shads are associated with boat fishing they now come in a wide range of sizes and many anglers are finding they are an effective lure to use from the shore. Larger shads (pictured right) are effective when fishing for species such as bass and pollock. They can often be internally weighted, meaning that they can be cast with no additional weight needing to be added to the lure, and also have hooks pre-fitted.
Hybrid Jelly Lures: This type of jelly lure is made up of a jelly lure body along with a metal head and other synthetic components such as artificial feathers or reflective material. The additional weight added to these lures from the metal head means that they can often be cast without the need to add additional weight, but the soft plastic body means the lure retains a natural swimming action. They are usually large lures and come fitted with bigger hooks, meaning that they are generally used when fishing for species such as bass and pollock from the shore, and they can also be used when boat fishing.
Other Types of Soft Lures: There are a wide range of other jelly lures available on the market. Light Rock Fishing (LRF) makes use of a range of very small jelly lures, which can be only a few centimetres long – read our full article on LRF for more information. Muppets are another type of jelly lure that resembles a squid or octopus, although they are mostly used for boat fishing. There are now a range of jelly lures appearing on the market which are designed to resemble a range of marine creatures such as shrimps and prawns, lobsters and crabs with most of these being used in Light Rock Fishing.