Journey Loc: Egg Harbor TWP

Grass shrimp are the most important food source for all the fish we seek in our back bays. Clean out any cooler at the end of a trip and you will find grass shrimp regurgitated by your fish.
We are entering our white perch season in South Jersey and although bloodworms will catch they won't match what fresh grass shrimp can do. I ran a Bait and Tackle shop in Wildwood and we had the perfect location for catching winter grass shrimp. They don't migrate because they are just too slow to go any distance. They stay put and wait for the spring warmup to begin breeding.
This time of year they do feed but being cold blooded the don't need much and they have to conserve as much energy as they can. This is when you need to find some quiet waters to score well.
I use a square umbrella style drop net and bait it with just about anything you have that can stay on a bait clp attached to the drop net. Our dock was located on a narrow waterway that had tidal waters moving through. Difference was that there were two openings in our little waterway with one to the south and one to the north. This caused the water to rise and fall but not much straight through water movement. We were more like a tub with the tide going up and down rather than in and out. The shrimp loved it here. They could jeed on tiny organisms and alge on the bottom without trying to hold on so they didn't get swept away.
I'd hang a piece of bunker from the bait hook I attached to the center post of the drop net and just let it sit on the bottom for an hour or two. When I would lift the net I was amazed at how many shrimp were in it.
Her are some pics of the net with my catch. Notice the while under the net. That was snow covering the deck.

Nothing but shrimp. This is what my net looks like.

NJ219bands Loc: New Jersey

Wow 😮 that’s awesome 👏. I saw winter grass shrimp netters in Absecon Creek and at East Point on Delaware Bay.

Journey Loc: Egg Harbor TWP

Neat thing about grass shrimp. Females are loaded with eggs all along their legs. The darker they are the closer they are to hatching. This hatch in the spring is perfect timing for the hatching or our predator fish like weakies and stripers. They are tiny and so are the shrimp. The food chain is loaded.
We had two saltwater aquariums at our dock loaded with local critters caught right from our dock. We watched the shrimp one time when the hatch was about to happen. The female would begin swimming a few feet off the bottom and travel from end to end. Then she would double up her body then snap back to straight again. she would continue to do this until the back of her protective shell would split open. She would pop right out of her old shell and as soon as she did the eggs would release and as they slowly drifted down they would all pop open and hundreds of perfectly shaped baby grass shrimp would be on the loose. Incredible thing to watch.

Pics of two grass shrimp. Larger female is loaded with eggs and notice how much smaller the male shrimp is.

NJ219bands Loc: New Jersey

Very interesting 🤔

Stevooo Loc: North Wildwood, NJ 08260

great info. they seem so small.how do you use them as bait?

Flytier Loc: Wilmington Delaware

Just slip them on a thin wire hook. Don't need anything bigger that a #4..

saw1 Loc: nor cal Windsor

WOW, I caught one on my Spro lure yesterday out on the Napa. Was hooked on one of the treble hook on one of my retrieves.

kandydisbar Loc: West Orange, NJ

That's so cool!! Wish I was close, I'd come and have a look.

CRKfish Loc: Southern New Jersey

How long can you keep them alive? Are they any good frozen or dried?

UncleRob Loc: NE Maryland

They work just as well frozen as they do fresh. They die quickly when hooked. I usually catch a bunch of them in the summer and freeze them for use in the spring. They're deadly for White and Yellow perch during the spring spawning runs.

wasi64 Loc: Accord, NY

Hi, I am looking for grass shrimp. Could you please spot the location on google map. You also could email me at mohorafarm@gmail.com. Thank you.