Anyone here know the lost art of grunting for worms to use for fish bait?

[Del in KS]

Anyone here know the lost art of grunting for worms to use for fish bait?

[streack]

It's almost that time of year to get the old gruntin iron out and the wooden stake.

[MLH]

Heard it's supposed to sound like a gopher in the area.

[wallofsam]

Never heard of it... what's it all about?

[Christian Emter]

Is it were you have to hunt for worms in the ground?

[rezavoirdog]

No, at night I believe what you do is water a lawn, get the soil soft and soggy and then you pound a stake (I can't remember, wood or iron) in then rub it with piece of wood; worms will think the vibration in the soil is a mole or gopher coming to get them and then they surface through the soft, soggy soil, and boom, you got worms for fishing!

[Beekeeper]

You bet, my dad taught me when I was about 6 years old. He had stakes driven down in several places around the farm cattle lot and chicken yard. He took a section of 2X4 and stroked it over the stake making a grunting sound. I was amazed when worms started popping up everywhere!

Saw a commercial vibrator special made for such at an outdoor show several years back. It's so wet down here now all you have to do is pick them up off the grass!

[huskerguy]

What kind of stakes do you use?

[dwaynez]

I have not personally used this technique, but my uncle swears by it and uses it every year.

I wet the ground and put out some corn meal and crushed crackers, I get more than enough worms to replenish my worm farm and bait needs.

[2Poppa]

Just as Beekeeper said ...
You drive a wooden stake into the ground and draw a flat metal rod across the top, creating a bullfrog-like grunting sound. Within minutes, hundreds of earthworms come to the surface.

Worm grunting mimics the vibrations made by burrowing moles, a voracious worm predator.

"It has often been said that if the ground is beaten or otherwise made to tremble, worms believe that they are pursued by a mole and leave their burrows."

Others have observed certain turtles and birds tapping the ground to bring worms to the surface to eat.

[DakotaMan]

It works like a charm... I have done it often. I'll bet I picked up at least a thousand worms though and I never got one to tell me what on earth his motivation was for crawling out into the open air. I never knew if he thought I was a mole, a freight train, a beautiful giant worm or what. You learn something every day from this board... bravo!

[jbird]

I tried this last weekend, guess I don't have the "touch". My kids laughed @ me though, and that's always rewarding, then we scoured the church parking lot and found a bunch.

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Every time I bend over to pick them up I grunt because I can't breathe for my fat belly!

[rudyglove27]

Agreed with Beekeeper answer above and A + 1 for you sir!!!