Wormed Out

Jay Jones, 58, of Smyrna, Del., often uses a double hook with a bloodworm on one and a Fishbite on the other. After an hour of fishing early one morning last week, he'd snagged 13 croakers. The fish took turns going after each bait.

"The Fishbites definitely work just as well," he said. "It's almost like I throw the hook right into their mouth."

Fishbites are often a favorite among the squeamish who would rather not have to touch the slimy bloodworms.

"They're messy, they bleed all over the place, and they bite!" said Jay Trauger, who was vacationing from Allentown, Pa., with his family. He picked up two packs of Fishbites on his way to the pier, saying that he'd "just be throwing money away" on the real thing.

"I can't get my 9-year-old daughter to go near one of those things," he said as he assumed his position, shoulder-to-shoulder with other anglers on the pier.

Fishbites made their debut five years ago when William Carr, a retired researcher for the University of Florida's Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, perfected a chemical mixture nearly identical to the substances that attract fish to live bait. It took him 30 years to come up with the recipe for shrimp, clam, squid and crab, and another year to develop the organic gel-like substance he used as the bait.

It wasn't until Carr, 70, came out with the bloodworm version last year that the family-run business, Carr Specialty Baits Inc., started to make a killing. The family started selling the product through a few independent bait shops in Florida, and now about 1,000 stores carry it. Revenue reached $1.8 million last year, up from about $257,000 in 2004, based on units sold. Profit is expected to grow by about 30 percent this year, and the bloodworm flavor accounts for 67 percent of sales, said Michael Carr, the inventor's son and vice president of marketing.

The product is simple: a strip of mesh fabric coated with a hardened, gel-like substance that secretes the bloodworm scent in the water. A piece as small as one-half inch stays on the hook long enough to catch four or five fish. Made from organic materials, Fishbites dissolve in hours without harming marine life, William Carr said.

"When we first put it on the shelf, they said, 'Son, that looks like chewing gum. What's gonna bite on that?' " he said. "But 82 species of fish have eaten that chewing gum."

Other companies have come out with similar baits. Pure Fishing Inc., introduced its "Gulp!" line three years ago and quickly became a market leader. Now the natural-smelling bait accounts for a third of the company's sales, according to spokesman Ron Kliegle.

But Fishbites have swallowed the competition in local bait shops.

"They've taken over completely," said Bill Weiss of Bill's Sport Shop in Lewes, Del., adding that he sells four times as many Fishbites than bloodworms. The shop, affectionately called Perms & Worms by locals because of the adjacent hair-product store, halved its bloodworm orders this year. "It's just not worth it to keep a lot of them around."