For many years I have enjoyed bank fishing at lake Tawakoni, with great success at catching multiple species of fish, it's my family favorite destination for camping, picnics and yes fishing. I have noticed that many people in this forum also enjoyed fishing for those fat white bass, hybrids and striped bass at Tawakoni. Quite often I could only envy what boaters hauled in each day at the lake but over the years I managed to catch a few 10lbs plus hybrids and stripers, last fall my 16 yo son caught a 16+ lb striper from the bank. Many of you would agree that Lake Tawakoni is a premier hybrid fishery and the best all around fishing lake including striper fishing second only to Texoma and the red river.

What if TPWD decide to manage Twok as a trophy blue catfish lake and put restriction on harvesting of large blue catfish to increase the number of large blue catfish in Twok many folds over its current population? How greater population of large blue catfish affects the survivability of hybrid and striped bass fingerling stocked by LTSA and Tpwd?

Here's your chance to voice your concerns to Tpwd by clicking on the link below
TPWD 2015 Catfish EXPANSION Plan
Please take TPWD surveys at the end of doc and send them your concerns and inputs.

While ALL blue catfish are opportunistic feeders, I don't see a noticeable growth in population for several years in Twok if a restriction is put on the harvest of larger trophy sized blue cats.

Now, once that happens and the populations become obvious, I don't think its the trophy class fish that will be the nemesis eating the fingerling hybrid and Striper. I think its the hybrid and Striper themselves that put the biggest dent in the fingerling population....along with tha whites and other 2-10lb blue catfish.

Fingerlings are normally stocked in early June which larger blues are spawning and not on the feed.

Not saying a trophy blue catfish will not pass up the opportunity to eat some fingerling hybrid� But I don't think the growth in population of trophy blue catfish is going to affect the overall #'s of hybrid and stripes in ole Twok.

My .02...

You can learn a lot about how quickly blue catfish population can grow to dominate any water body and their ferocious appetite to decimate the food chains by reading NOAA research publication, please click on link below

Invasive Blue Catfish Facts

From years past harvesting rates, any restrictions on harvesting blue catfish over 30" (about 10lbs ) will have immediate negative impact on hybrids and stripers overall growth. Harvest rates have been very high at Tawakoni but each year the healthy successive year classes of blue catfish were able grow and replenish the population at sustainable rates or better. More fish of all sizes were harvested and but even more fish were reproduced and growing in lake, that's why blue catfish fisheries seems to get better each year. A restriction on harvesting sexually mature catfish 10lbs or larger will first keep hundreds of large fish in the lake that would have been harvested, these large blue catfish will produce millions of excessive offspring in the first year and consume bait fish that would otherwise available for the under classes of blue catfish and hybrids and stripers population...

Twak is, and has been for years, the blue cat capitol of Texas and that hasn't stopped the hybrid fishery from being great. Look at fork, best lmb lake they say, and it cranks out mega whites. If blues were the invasive food chain disrupting monster some claim, they would be the only fish left in lots of Texas lakes.

Catfishing has taken a backseat to nearly every other fishery in Texas for decades. It's about time they spend money and effort on catfish.

I've taken several surveys and sent loads of emails to tpwd voicing my opinion of stocking rates for blues vs every other fish. It's time for tpwd's money and responsibilities to be spread more evenly.

Great until now, so far, right? So don't mess with what's working.

I read the whole document. I would hardly call that a plan. More like an idea. Like most things a govt agency does its to vague to mean anything. Who knows what they will do. I like the idea of a comprehensive management plan for catfish. I'm sure catfish and hybrids / whites compete on some level, but I think it's definitely possible for a given lake to have both a great catfish and hybrid fishery. For me catfish are usually biting when the whites and hybrids are not. Gives me a quality fishing experience year round.

Kubroe, you made excellent points. Tpwd never had it so good with the current regs at TAWAKONI of for catfish, hybrids, stripers, and of course white bass. I know I fish at Tawakoni year round, and very rare you can find a lake with quality fishing like Twok. You're also right about their vagueness.

Tpwd has been under sustained pressure from a group of Tawakoni trophy catfish guides to put restrictions on harvesting blue catfish 10lbs or larger. They had also pushed for slot implementation similar to slot at lake Lewisville which produces inferior blue catfish population compared to lake Lavon which has no slot. Nearby Lake Ray Hubbard produces similar catfish fishery but there blue catfish record is inches up compared to Lewisville stuck with the 2000 record of mere 63# blue catfish. Lake Ray Hubbard also produces superior hybrid population compared to its slotted neighborly lake Lewisville.


Tawakoni is performing with much superior fisheries producing greater quality and quantity of blue catfish, hybrids , stripers and white bass.

A slot is not necessary for Lake Tawakoni, a slot has a much potential of destroying Twok fisheries than helping. Blue catfish are much bigger than large mouth bass and can live twice as long as lmb, few texas lake can sustain hundreds of monster blue catfish without eating up all other fish in the lake and eventually they will start to canibalize on their own kind out of existence. Big fish can only grow big IF they have food to eat.

Managing for catfish is the dumbest idea i have heard in a while. I have fished Tawakoni and there is already so many catfish in there it is ridiculous. We have caught quite a few on artificial baits. If Texas wants to improve the fishery, stock stripers and hybrids. I sure as hell will not drive to Tawakoni for catfishing.

Welcome to the forum!

The idea is to restrict the harvest of trophy class catfish. Keep all the eater size catfish that you catch on artificial baits and you will do your part to control the population. If you have ever had a 5 fish stringer that weighed over 200 lbs, you would understand why it is so popular. It is not an bad idea in my opinion because I enjoy all types of fishing depending on the season. I think limiting largemouth harvest to only 5 fish is ridiculous because I love eating them.