Live baiting is usually the most productive method for catching yellowfin tuna. Some of the most common live baits used when tuna fishing in the gulf are threadfin herring, menhaden/pogies, blue runners/hardtails, and mullet. When choosing a live bait for tuna fishing, you want to “match the hatch.” Whatever the tuna are feeding on that time of year is the type of live bait you want to use. Tuna feed on different bait fish at different times of the year, so matching the hatch is how you select bait for tuna.