What is the best bait for tarpon?


The best bait for tarpon is dead bait like a chunk of ladyfish or mullet. You will find that most of the big tarpon that are caught around the world every year are caught with dead bait on the bottom. They would much rather scavenge for a meal than use up valuable energy to chase down their food. 

Big fish are smart and lazy. That is how they got to be so big in the first place. Tarpon can live for 50 years so they have seen all of the different lures that fishermen have thrown at them for years. That is why the best bait for big tarpon is dead bait.

When the tarpon are finnicky and won't bite your live bait or lures a dead bait is often the way to get them hooked up. A fresh dead ladyfish will not be ignored if there are hungry tarpon in the area.

I am a FISHING CHARTER CAPTAIN on the Treasure Coast of Florida. I have been fishing the grass flats and mangroves all over Florida for more then 40 years. Most of the big tarpon that I catch are caught on the bottom with a fresh dead bait.

​I like to use ladyfish, mullet and bluefish the best but I have heard the a catfish with the fins busted off and the head removed works well too.

​Watch the video below to learn more.  

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​What is the best bait for tarpon?

Most predators like tarpon will readily take a dead bait over lures and live baits. There are some days that the tarpon are feeding so voraciously that they will hit just about anything but those days are rare.

Tarpon are usually an early morning or late afternoon target for fishermen. Those are the best times to catch a tarpon when you are using lures or live bait. AND YES you can catch a ton of tarpon with lures and live bait but dead ones work when they aren't hitting those baits.

Guess what? I think as tarpon get older they get lazy. Tarpon will feed all day long if you offer them a fresh dead bait on the bottom. I think that they look at it like an easy meal. It might not necessarily be the best meal but it is an easy one that doesn't take any effort so they eat it.

I wrote another article on this website that covers in great detail the best baits and lures for catching tarpon. You can read that article by clicking right here.

They are a lot like me. I am old and lazy so if there is an old pizza slice sitting in a box from the night before I will eat it cold. I could cook something but that would take some effort so I take the easy meal. Predators like tarpon are the same way.

Think about a male lion. They sleep most of the day and when they are hungry they will steal food from their pride or another predator. It takes a lot less calories to steal some food that is already dead versus having to chase down and kill a live one.

The key to catching tarpon with dead bait is to figure out where the tarpon are. They like to move around a lot when they are actively searching for food. Once you figure out where they like to hang out you can sink a bait in the area and let the smell bring them to your bait.

Tarpon like to be near a deep channel. They might hit a shallow grass flat or line of mangroves for some food but there is usually a deep spot somewhere close for them to go to.

The mouths of tidal creeks is one of my favorite places to fish for tarpon with dead bait. The key to catching tarpon with dead bait is to make the bait big enough so that the catfish in the area can't eat it.

For some reason, the catfish always seem to sniff out bait on the bottom before the tarpon do. That is okay as long as they can't swallow it. 

Big tarpon like big dead baits so don't be stingy with your baits. The best bait for tarpon is a fresh dead ladyfish with its tail cut off. I like one that is about 10 inches long with the head. Make sure to leave the head on.

Tarpon will also eat a fresh dead mullet or a bluefish too. For some reason they seem to prefer the bluefish without the head but leave the head with the mullet.


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​You will have to beef up your leader to catch a big tarpon so use your discretion when rigging your bait. I use a 50 pound leader and the tarpon that I catch are mostly under 50 pounds. A bigger tarpon can cut your line with their gills or their sandpaper like mouths.

I like to use a leader that is about the length of the tarpon that I am targeting. If the tarpon rolling in the area are about 5 feet long, then I will use a 5 foot long leader.

Use just enough of a sinker to keep your bait on the bottom so that the current doesn't drag it. Sometimes an oversized sinker will spook them and make them drop your bait after picking it up.

One of the downsides to catching huge tarpon with dead bait is that they take a long time to revive after you catch them. They will literally fight you to the death so take a few minutes to make sure that they can swim off after a long fight.

If you don't then they will just sink to the bottom and die. They build up a lot of lactic acid in their muscles are their blood is oxygen depleted after a long fight. There is no sense killing a fish that you don't plan on eating anyways, right? Please take the time to revive them.

The new rule in Florida is that you cannot take a tarpon out of the water that is over 40 inches in length. So make sure that you don't break this rule or the Florida Wildlife Commission will hit you with some huge fines. It's a good rule because big, heavy tarpon often sustain internal injuries when taken out of the water.

The video below shows why dead bait is the best bait for tarpon.

Conclusion:

If you look through the record books you will see that many of the world and state record fish were caught on dead baits. There is a reason for that. Big fish are lazy and know that it is not smart to expend too much energy chasing live food around. That is why dead bait is often the best bait for tarpon, snook and redfish. Especially if you are looking to catch your personal best fish.

It is a lot more energy efficient to find some food that won't run away from you. Big tarpon know this too. When the bite is slow and they are not buying what you are selling to them, try a dead bait. Keep a ladyfish or two in the cooler just in case the tarpon bite is slow.

Sure it is not an action packed adventure all of the time. You might have to soak your bait for an hour or so before the tarpon find it. BUT catching one big tarpon is better than catching no big tarpons, right?

I can unequivocally say that a fresh dead bait is the best bait for tarpon. Some people may want to argue this point with me but they would be wrong. Especially if you are targeting BIG tarpon. BIG tarpon prefer dead baits over live baits most of the time.

I hope that this article answers the question, "What is the best bait for tarpon?" Thank you for reading it. 
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