There is not likely a more popular fishing bait on the planet than the good old worm. Night Crawlers, Red Wigglers, and Earth Worms are live bait for everything from small sunfish and crappies to catfish, perch, walleye, bass, bluegill, and more …

Night Crawlers

The traditional fishing bait (worldwide) has been the Canadian Night Crawler as they are large and not expensive to buy.  Earthworms and Night Crawlers are terms that are often used interchangeably.  Night Crawlers, otherwise known as dew worms or garden worms, appear at night when the dew is on the grass or on sidewalks after a rain.  Remember, the main difference between red wigglers vs earthworms is in what they eat and how they live.

You can feed your nightcrawlers all the same types of kitchen waste that you would put in a compost pile, such as fruit and vegetable peelings, coffee grounds and tea leaves, stale bread, and shredded paper (no colored ink).  Avoid putting dairy products or meat in the bedding, which can cause it to go sour.  Night crawlers like to dig deeper and live in solitude which is opposite of the Red Wigglers which live more near the surface and do not mind crowding.

Worms bring a natural smell to your fishing presentation, which is always a plus. They can also survive for a few hours in and out of the water, allowing them to wiggle and entice fish for a good length of time.

Night Crawlers worms thrive in temperatures between 50° and 67° Fahrenheit (10° to 19° Celsius).   It’s also a good idea to place the worm tubs in your cooler with some ice if you plan on fishing trip for more than just one day.

Red Wigglers 

Red wigglers, also called red worms, are used in worm composting or vermiculture activity.

Red worms are known to work particularly well for smaller fish like trout, bluegills, crappie and perch because these fish have smaller mouths and are either afraid or unable to eat big night crawlers consistently. 

A great worm for trout fishing is the Red Wiggler (Eisenia fetida) – it is small enough to fit on a hook, is durable in the water and as the name implies, is known to wiggle vigorously as well.  Unlike garden worms, Red Wigglers CAN be easily raised in containers – and will be more than happy to eat your household fruit/veggie waste.

The Red Wigglers are not as commonly available in bait shops. 

The last thing you want is to open up a can of dead worms when you arrive to your favorite fishing spot.  Our Red Wigglers are packaged in EPS foam tubs to keep them cool and extend their useful lifespan.  Red wiggler worms thrive in temperatures between 55° and 75° Fahrenheit (12° to 24° Celsius).  They cannot tolerate hot temperatures so the insulated box is important.  It’s also a good idea to place the Red Worm tubs in your cooler with some ice if you plan on fishing trip for more than just one day.