Fishing bait including earthworms, maggots, and live fish is used by millions of anglers, raising underappreciated welfare questions about the treatment of bait organisms.
Bait welfare is an overlooked corner of fishing ethics. Earthworms, despite their simple nervous systems, respond to noxious stimuli in ways that suggest nociception, and threading a living earthworm onto a hook is a painful experience if pain-like states are possible in that organism. The moral weight is uncertain but nonzero. Maggots are less likely to be pain-sensitive given their simpler nervous systems. Live fish used as bait — where permitted — are clearly capable of suffering and their use involves significant welfare cost. The hierarchy of welfare concern for bait organisms is roughly: live fish (highest concern, most laws prohibit this) > earthworms (moderate uncertainty) > maggots (low probability of welfare concern). Anglers who wish to minimise bait welfare harm can choose artificial lures or pellet-based attractants that involve no live animal use.