Mole Crabs / Sand Fleas???

[hct236]

A friend of mine that lives on the coast is comming back next weekend to visit his parents. He said he is gonna bring me several dozen frozen mole crabs (sand fleas) he caught and quick froze. He says the cats will tear them up. I've never heard of them before, anybody know anything about them? All I know is he said 10 dozen won't take up much space in the chest freezer.

[psychomekanik]

Sounds like something that would require a colored ointment to get rid of !

[hct236]

Sounds like something that would require a colored ointment to get rid of !

That's funny LMAO

I found out 1 thing about them......they sure are UGLY little devils!

[cfx90]

How'd ya do? They're like candy in the surf fishing world...pompano, whiting, black & red drum, sheepshead, even spot will eat the small ones.

[Channel Cat]

How'd ya do? They're like candy in the surf fishing world...pompano, whiting, black & red drum, sheepshead, even spot will eat the small ones.

I agree completely with that assessment. A mole crab is a different animal altogether, although I've never seen a small mole crab and they may look something like a sand flea. As to flash freezing them that might make them almost impossible to get and keep on a hook. After you let it thaw it's going to turn to mush and the shell will crack. Best of luck with them.

[Demented724]

i remember seeing those things all over the place in ocean city. We collected a few and tried them out when we were fishing off of a pier down there and didnt have any luck on them. although it seemed like you couldnt keep a line in the water without what they called a spider crab tearing off your bait or getting tangled up in the line.

[Demented724]

First, you gotta be where the fish are.
Never been a fan of pier fishing because you have to fish what is there. Very limiting.

Surf fishing is much different. I don't just throw out lines anywhere. You have to learn to read the beach. You walk along the beach looking at how the water recedes to find sloughs. Often time at low tide you find sloughs by finding patches of crushed sea shells and in those you'll find sand flea shells.

That is where you fish. Those sand flea shells are what fish feeding on them have spit out. Even when you find a place like that you have then figure out how far to throw.
The natural tendency is to throw as far as you can, just like people on a pier tend to want to go out as far as they can to fish.
Been on the beach many a time when you practically fished in the foam at your feet.

Just depends on the bottom structure and tide.

Also on sand fleas. As I mentioned many people including myself swear by fishing with the egg laden females. Flip them over and lift up the tab on the bottom. If they have some orange goop in there, that is eggs.
I break off or crack some of the shell around the bottom edge of the sand flea and hook them straight through the back.

But bottom line for me, pier fishing sucks. I'd rather comb the beaches in search of the sloughs.
Constant wave action and storms are constantly altering bottom structure that is going to hold fish.
You can literally be 5 foot out of the sweet spot and have a 1/4 the hits you'll have in the sweet spot.

im at a complete loss when it comes to fishing salt water. i tried it on vacation last year and that was it lol caught a couple flounders on the side of the island where there wasnt any waves. thanks for the tips though, if i ever give it a try again ill keep that in mind.

[rivershark-voulantary]

You can catch them on the beach between waves. Look for the little V ripples in the sand as the water is receding. I've had great luck using them for sheepshead, pompano, and permit bait. Never heard of using them for cats though.