Well, my local leech supply is no longer. Leeches are a mainstay for me for perch/ walleye fishing. I thought before I go google eyed searching I'd ask here. What is an effective way to catch, trap leeches?

I remember pulling hunks of sod out of a river bank the clods were full of leeches?

I haven't done this but I heard say that people would put a chunk of beef liver on a string, drop it in the creek for an hour, pull up and pick the leeches of it.

Minnow trap wrapped in screen material?

Just tell people you won the powerball jackpot
The leech's will come to you. Lol

Liver or heart in a pie tin folded over and crimped just leaving a couple openings For leaches to enter.
Toss in a warm ponds at dusk with leeches and pull up at first light the next day. You should have plenty of leeches if There in the pond. They will be on inside and outside of pie tin

Sounds like a plan. I'll give these a try, well except the lotto one as I don't want the kind of leeches you can never get rid of.

I wonder how prevalent they are in ponds around here? It sure would a lot cheaper to catch your own. I may have to save a few beaver livers for bait and give it a try, if I'm trying to save money no reason to buy liver for bait.

I've caught turtles out of the crick here that had plenty on them so I know they're there. So I need a way to get the leeches without getting the snappers all bent out of shape.

YouTube videos- Leech Trapping

If you can only collect them after early morning squashed coffee cans or now plastic, opaque plastic jugs with holes drilled in bottom to drain out water(cut narrow neck jugs down for wider opening - easier for leeches to get in) as it get light leeches head for dark places so will stay with bait. Mark with string and float. Opaque plastic accordion folded and with a little bait in each fold wired folded up is also is good. Best ponds I've had are fish and mostly minnow free with dark/stained water.

I have used coffee cans or ice cream buckets with a few nickel sized holes in them. Large sawed up beef bones worked good for bait and didn't get funky quite as fast.

Be careful sorting leeches from bloodsuckers. Most fish will spit a bloodsucker so hard you will get slack in your line......

ive never seen a ribbon leech on a snapper, most likely youre seeing blood suckers on them.

good advice from drakej above. small ponds with no inlet/outlet, and no fish or minnows. I believe most are caught above an east/west line that runs through central Minnesota. very few in southern minn where I grew up.

We would roll up butcher scraps (bones) in burlap approximately 18"-24" wide. Then loosely tie each end with string, just tight enough to keep the bones from falling out. This would essentially look like a big, unwrapped tootsie roll. These were then attached to a float.

I agree, Drake gave excellent advice above.

I use the carcasses from panfish I have filleted, works good.

LOL, ain't that the truth!

Look in Washington DC.

I think many ponds may have different types of leeches in them. Some aren't good for fishing.

I have one pond that has the GIANT ribbon leeches in that attach themselves in hoards to my spring beaver...causing damage to the anus area. I'm sure they would consume the entire beaver given enough time. I don't believe these leeches are any good for fishing, however. kind of freaked me out the first time pulling up a beaver out of this pond. Some were as wide as your thumb.

what is different between blood sucks an leaches

blood suckers have a tooth, that they use to puncture skin and feed on blood. ribbon leeches feed on decaying plant/animal matter, and have no tooth.