Stand around a boat ramp or hang around a bait shop long enough and you’ll no doubt hear the most ubiquitous question in fishing: What are they biting?

While it’s a common query, it’s actually the wrong question for those who yearn for the scoop on the best trick to score fish.

Ask that question and you might get any of a hundred recommendations. Spoons, worms, crankbaits, spinners, buzzbaits, bladed jigs, stick worms, minnows and who-knows-what are among the plethora of options for inquisitive fishers.

Facts are, however, the fish don’t prefer one bait over others. Instead, they react to the lure’s presence in their environment. To entice a reaction, the angler first must get the lure in the vicinity of a fish.

The key, of course, is for the fish to notice the lure. Then it becomes a matter of the fish reacting to its presence in what is commonly known as the “strike.”

Gaining notice depends on a list of variables as long as your boat. Are the fish in a feeding mood? Is it sunny or cloudy? Is the water clear or turbid? Cold or hot? Current? Where are the sun and moon? Is it windy? Is the surface slick or choppy? And so it goes.

I ponder such questions often. It’s part of the fun of fishing. Understanding the conditions informs the decisions anglers make out on the water.

Successful anglers are prepared for whatever curveballs might zip across our efforts. Conditions will dictate whether it is a day for finesse tactics or a power fishing. Do I need to tease them out of a funky mood or take advantage of their hyped-up aggression?

Truth is, we might have two, three or more “best” lures on any given day because the best lures are those that most efficiently and effectively get into the realm where the fish are holding.

If they are hugging a deep structure, the angler needs a bait that bounces off the bottom. Think jigs or diving crankbaits. If they are chasing bait across points or flats, the angler needs to cover water. Think bladed jigs, spinnerbaits or shallow-running plugs. If they are crashing schools of shad, the angler needs to work the surface. Think buzzbaits, walking baits, poppers and even lipless crankbaits.

If real meat matters, the angler can plus the jig or spinner with nightcrawlers or minnows. If the water is cloudy, the angler should go with bright, even gaudy, lures. If the water is clear, the angler can tie on a natural-color bait.

Multiple patterns exist every day on every body of water. Consider that some Erie anglers troll spoons and plugs for walleyes, while many cast Erie Dearies and other spinner-and-worm rigs.

Bass anglers who compare their fortunes know that while some catch limits in shallow grass, others get them good out on the deep structure. Some crappie anglers whack them on curlytail jigs and others swear only the liveliest minnows will work.

There is no one-size-fits-all solution, so ask not what they’re biting. Think instead about the lure best suited to get to and through the places where the fish are living and eating.

Jack Wollitz has written this column for Vindicator and Tribune Chronicle readers since 1988. Email him at jackbbaass@gmail.com.