EARTHWORMS
Cats, particularly channels, small flatheads and small blues, find night crawlers and other earthworms irresistible. Buy them in bait shops or gather them by raking through damp leaves in flowerbeds and woods.

I usually fish worms on a slip-bobber rig that keeps them floating just inches above the bottom. You also can use a hypodermic syringe or special-made worm blower to inflate the worm. A shot of air in the body lifts the worms up, making them more visible to catfish. Your sinker moves along the bottom while your baits ride high.

If you want to catch a big cat on worms, try this rig. First tie a 6/0 to 8/0 octopus or Kahle hook below a small egg sinker and bait it with as many night crawlers as you can impale on the hook. Leave the ends of the worms dangling loosely. Small sunfish, suckers, catfish will nibble the worms when the big ball of bait is fished on bottom. A big cat nearby is likely to see the little fish, feeding and think it is safe to join the action. If you see the nibbling stop it means the small fish are fleeing as the big cat approaches. Prepare for a strike.

CRAWFISH
Crawfish are dynamite catfish baits. In many lakes, ponds and streams, these crustaceans are the primary forage of channel cats, flatheads and small blues. Collect them by turning rocks on a stream bottom and grabbing them with your hands, a dip net or a seine. Crawfish traps baited with fish parts in a cheesecloth bag also work.

The best crawfish are "peelers," those that have molted their hard outer shell. Small- to medium-sized hardshells also work, but break off their pincers to keep them from grabbing objects on the bottom. Keep crawfish in a minnow bucket with wet leaves or moss in the bottom.

To mimic natural action, rig crawfish for a backward retrieve. Thread the hook up, through and out the top of the tail, and work them across the bottom with a slow stop-and-go motion. Many cats also accept a broken-off tail or piece of peeled tail meat threaded on a hook.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION
Keith Sutton is the author of three books on catfishing: Fishing for Catfish, Catching Catfish, and Catfishing: Beyond the Basics. For more details on these titles, or to order autographed copies, visit Sutton's Web site at www.catfishsutton.com