What is the differnce between an anchovy and a herring.

I have fished with both and see no real differnce.

The anchovy is softer and a little slimmer?

They are also cheaper.....2.49 a dozen as opposed to 5 bucks or so.

To me anchovies are also the right size for most salmon fishing. I like to hook them right through the lower lip and then upward so as to lock their mouth shut. Then I rely on a dodger to give them action.

The thing to me that makes a bigdifference between them besides price is that when I am fishing an area with some big herring schools and the fish are there but not biting, I will toss out anchovies and more often than not trigger them to bite my gear.

When fishing for kings at bouy 10. I would always go for anchovy instead of herring. Maybe we where doing other things right but it seems we would outfish most boats, 2 to 1. They are harder to keep on a hook but worth it. If fishing for silvers, I dont think it matters much. DH

how do you rig anchovie for salmon? I usually cutplug herring with dual hook rigs, but haven't fish anchovie much.

Thanks,

Anchovie helmet and a tooth pick stuck through the head. Outdoor Emporium has em.

This is a good question and I wonder why there isn't more discussion.

I generally fish herring in the Puget Sound and anchovies when I go to Canada (Nootka Sound specifically). Other places in Canada (Port Hardy) the preferred bait was plug cut herring. My guess is that certain baitfish are more common in certain areas and therefore used by the local fisherman. Puget Sound has herring populations so fisherman use herring. Ocean fish often feed on anchovies so anchovies are more commonly used along the West side of Vancouver Island. There is probably also a bit of local bias to choice of baits even in an alternative will work just as well.

My favorite way to rig a herring is plug cut....unless soft, then I will use a whole herring. For anchovies I always use a hood...either clear or green glow.

When you fish the Columbia, watch for bait surfacing. Pull in on top of them with a herring jig and catch them. Only takes about ten minutes to load up. Usually they are anchovies and when caught live, they stay on the hook pretty well. Whatever bait is present works best whether it is herring or anchovies.