Ditch eel refers to the freshwater juvenillie stage of the Pacific Lamprey, they can be found in ditches and not in tackle stores, obtaining them is not easily done by legal means. That being said the Lampreys found in stores are the adult version of this same fish when they return from their ocean phase of life, the ones in stores are not in fact Fraser River Lampreys but often Alaskan or Artic version of the same creature. They are however a decent bait as they bleed out well and have a strong smell. Fraser Lampreys, and the ditch eels are protected species so obtaining them can be tricky.
If you ever see dump trucks dumping mud in fields go check it out as often municipalities will dump the mud they remove from ditches in fields, many delictable Sturgeon foods can be found in said mud, please PM me the whereabouts as well, I will reward this type of info with hand made lures
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