Another trotline fatality?

I guess...

Judging by the pic that fish is getting eaten...

Sad sad sad... that's all I have to say

Here we go again. Ibtl.

I could got 2 meals outta that. mmm

what's ibtl ?

i was always taught that if you are gonna kill something, you eat it. I tend to keep a majority of fish i catch, but i also clean them and cook them up. The day i get too lazy to clean my catch or kill is the day i should hang up my rods, lines or guns.

Ait it is in before the lock ibtl

suma ya'll are just sad ... upset cuz a couple fat boys ate a fish and prolly some far more important stuff is passin' right under your nose & you could care less

there's more and bigger fish in texas waters than ever before & ya'll act like they are almost extinct ... that sounds like the stuff washington dc is shovelin'

right more power to you if you catch one that big

as long as they ate it, i could care less..that is a hell of a fish and even on a trotline, it takes some skill to catch something that big. I think a lot of people are still upset about the previous one that was posted where we were told they took a pic with it and then threw the fish down the hill and wasted it. That would upset me. I dont think that i will ever have enough pull to be able to tell someone what they can do with their catch or kill. I just hope that what was mentioned in the previous post is not what happened here

I say awesome fish and I wish I could've caught it. Beyond that it's ain't my bidness.

Could that possibly be because catch and release of trophy fish has become more prominent in recent years? I'm no scientist, but that makes sense to me.

Nice one!

Aaron there ain't no arguing with AK. He has a point and don't need attacking every time he says something. You're right you're no scientist. Just a kid running your mouth. Let it go.

The one on the right is not a boy.....

Put that in your pipe and smoke it!

Nevermind... Walking away...

LOL, had to go back and look.

Just sayin, would a fish like that be on the decline like an old deer or does it work like that. Im thinkin that fish may be pretty old.

That fish ain't even got any gray hair he's in his prime.

Some very nice cats being caught! Hope I'm next!!

Lol it seems every post is turning into this. I like cpr but lets not blast the ones that don't.

i agree. the CPR method sounds nice and those that do it, i aint gonna dog you for it. i have said it before, but i will say it again, if you want your position respected, yelling and whining and complaining about the other sides position will just cement the sides where there will be no movement and only will cause a divide that may force some of the knowledge that people bring to this forum to leave. I would prefer to just complement the fish people catch. If i would get after anyone, it would be those who are wasting the fish, catching it, picturing it, and then throwing it away.

I'm not. I plan to start a petition amongst all guides on lavon, twok, texoma, and whoever else wants to sign to enforce a statewide slot limit on all breeds of catfish. Once I get 1000 signatures I'm driving to Austin and presenting this in person. Many of you will laugh, but conservation and people doing the right thing are what's helped bring large catfish back. The samething worked for stripers, redfish, and white sturgeon. If anyone would like to help me put this togeather I would love to hear from you trooper0711@gmail.com

do you really consider eatin' a big fish to be immoral? ... people doing the "RIGHT THING" brought large catfish back? ... from where?

never knew big fish had been lost ... i have been fishing since about 1964 & like i said before there are more & bigger fish in texas waters than ever before ... oh yeah in spite of us neanderthals

your crusade has nothing to do with conservation or bringing big fish back (they never have left) but all to do with you and people that think like you, being in control

Now that is yet another HOG of a fish , so they are eating it, so what maybe necessity dictates this for them you just never know...... (ok the one on the right has not missed too many meals I will give you that!)

That CAT has helped produce more fish than you can count and I am sure he is close to the end of his life cycle (well maybe).

Anyway I love seeing Blues that have gotten that big! That just tells me catfisherman are doing their part and not over harvesting. Some have to go at times. Is it a shame if you see this all of the time?,,,,,,,YES, however you DONT see this all of the time.

Just another government hand in the pot takin a little bit of freedom away one small bit at a time don't ya think? Won't that just restrict law abiding citizens even more? Those that want to take any fish outside of the slot restrictions are gonna do it regardless. Kinda like the antler restrictions, how many bucks you think got taken this last year that were absolutlely greater than 13"?

Not arguin, just hate seeing restriction after restriction get slammed in our faces. If we were dangerously depleting the resource I could understand it.

Thank you for your courage!

Is this the fish that was photographed then pitched away?

Just an old cat like me and smells the same and can't breed anymore...lol

CPR pregnant female. Promised them I would post her for letting her go.

And what would your slots be, you want people to sign a petition not knowing what its all about tell more details. Exactly what does your petition say exactly.Would really like to see your channel cat slot ?? While your at it why not add 1 rod per man also that should help less fish caught less fish to worry about thats what you want isnt it, how bout cant keep ANY FISH for 5yrs or hell make it 10 wouldnt that help

that thing would be awesome in a bass pro aquarium

I am open to suggestions on slot limit. My thought for blues was 12-30" and 18-36" for flats. I would love suggestions my wife is helping me put it togeather.

What a butterball! That fish is pretty big, too!

ouch!

Obviously you have no idea what a slot is !!!! Startin a petition about something you know absolutely nuthin about good luck. I actually like the slot but no way I would sign a Petition for flats and channels

I CPR all fish over 10 pounds. However, I say no to a slot. I would rather see the limit get dropped from 25 cats per day to 15.

strong opinions. I practice CPR but if I caught a lake record I do not see anything wrong with keeping it and having it mounted and/or for eating.
almost every fish over 10lbs I have returned for hopefully a future catch for my daughter and her generation.
Seems to me that jug and trog lines catch a lot more fish, including BIG fish that are kept. hmmm

We all have our opinions, but one thing that each should consider before demanding legislation is what good research is out there to back up the legislation some of you think is needed.

I don't think there is sound justification on most lakes to the lower the limit on catfish, especially smaller blues and channels. Catfish being the nest guarders that they are happen to be extremely prolific, especially channel catfish. In the right lakes blue catfish are also prolific although in some lakes they do not reproduce well. For example, there are so many small catfish in Lake Palestine that the limit has been upped to 50 with only 5 allowed over 20". To me this says that there are not enough people keeping catfish as it is. When it goes on like that long enough an overabundance of small fish will stunt the population and have an adverse effect on other population dynamics as well. I realize that not every lake is like Lake Palestine, but I do think there is something to be said for keeping more smaller fish than are kept now.

On the other hand, I also have to wonder if we really need disallow keeping the big fish. A few things are worth thinking about on this side. One, historically most cat fisherman have kept their catch, be it small or large fish. It is only in more recent times that the cat fish community has began to concern itself with CPR angling in the same manor that other communities have been at for 20 years or more. Consider that those larger catfish have already survived and managed to thrive despite most anglers of yesterday keeping what they caught, and also consider that today those fish have a greater chance of being released by whomever happens to catch them without the law compelling them to do so. Second, many of the lakes we fish in today were impounded post world war II, late 40's through early 60's, so most of them are mature lakes. As lakes age the structure and cover degrade over time, eventually leaving you with a featureless bowl for lack of a better description, it takes about 100 years for this to happen, so it could be said that some of our older lakes are on the decline from a habitat standpoint. Although relatively small compared to some, Lake Bellwood in Tyler is a good example of this, and it was impounded in the early 1900's. This can be a factor in why some are reporting less favorable fisheries than 10-15 years ago. It may be that rather than slot limits on fish what is really needed is habitat improvement. I don't think that is talked about enough. True enough, in the deeper water sections of many of these lakes wood cover will last longer than in the shallow portions, but cover in the shallow portions is vital to the health of a lake. It is this shallow water cover that provides good spawning habitat for the larger fish and helps protect the smaller fish as they age. It also provides protection and substrate for the smaller organisms that make up the food chain.

If you skipped most of my wordy post, then just read this part. Keep more small fish. Monitor large fish harvesting, but not enough data to support total shut off at this time. Improve habitat in lakes as they age if you want to preserve the fishery for future generations.

+1 Well said.

[quote=

If you skipped most of my wordy post, then just read this part. Keep more small fish. Monitor large fish harvesting, but not enough data to support total shut off at this time. Improve habitat in lakes as they age if you want to preserve the fishery for future generations. [/quote]

Very well spoken, could not agree more with what you said in the above post. Thanks for sharing. I dont fish lakes as much as rivers so the improvement of habitat happens naturally and would not be my main concern where I fish. I would like to see more people keeping smaller catfish (under 32 inches) to eat and letting the bigger ones swim free to be caught again. Our laws are one fish over 32 inches per person per day. No limit on those under 32 inches. I have seen research that shows this type of limit helps the trophy catfish populations. I posted this link in a different thread but feel it applies here as well.
http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/fishing/forecasts-and-reports/tidal-river-blue-catfish-report.pdf

I'm not into lowering limits as the population is now and always has been strong. The number of large blues has increased, however, it is not where it was many years ago. I like to use redfish as an example because that is where I have personally seen the most good done with slot limits. During the 70s and 80s redfish became very popular table fair and it wiped out the numbers of large reds on the North Carolina coast. Since slot limits were imposed the number of 60lb+ fish has Increased dramatically. Just before I moved to Texas a red was caught that was estimated to be 105lbs (it was measured photographed and immediately released). this was unheard of just twenty years earlier. Mark twain spoke of seeing a 250lb blue in a Mississippi fish market. Imagine if we could see those today.

Now go read how a slot works cause you dont have a clue,unless you really want to protect the blues between 12 and 30inches and flats between 18 and 36

Forgive my ignorance opus. All blues under 12" or current law and all fish over 30" should be released in my opinion. That is a nice blue in your avatar. I hope it was promptly c.p.red as this one was.

One of the things that I sort of referred to without saying directly is that 60-70 years ago these lakes we fish in today were brand new lakes with the only large fish in them being those that were in the river system when they were impounded. The information you are talking about does not apply equally across the board for rivers and lakes and each body of water requires attention in itself. What works at one lake may not work at all on a river. The reason such large fish were seen in the Mississippi has more to do with that being a large river system which can support much more biomass than a lake, and further the "decline" there has more to do with commercial fishing than meat for the table fishermen. That doesn't factor in what has been dumped into the Mississippi over the years that has likely plaid a role in reducing the maximum lifespan of fish in the system, another important factor worth considering.

Nice Fish!

The man that caught that fish happens to be my father. I've spent a many of days on the water with him catching nice catfish. Its not up to me or you to decide what is good or bad for the catfish population. The South Carolina Department of natural Resources determine what is best for the species. State Law regulates that we can only keep one blue cat over 36 inches in length. We turn loose anywhere from 5 to 15 catfish a day over that size limit. In my opinion its just like deer hunting. If I'm setting in a tree and I see a monster Buck walk under my stand I'm damn sure not gonna let him keep walking. The catfish population is thriving in lake moultrie. It seems to me that the guides never like the trot liners because they catch nice fish and I've personally heard one guide say "My clients could have caught them fish" That is a perfect statement! There are plenty of catfish out there for everyone. What I don't understand is how is it fine for you as a guide to keep a big blue but someone who uses trot lines should be banded from the lakes.

As an update, the fish was eaten and DNR was contacted to get the remains and analyses them. The Biologist told me that this particular fish is probably between 19 and 40 years old. It surprised me but he said that most monster cats have a unique gene in them that makes them grow at a unusual rate. It intrigued me because I would have thought that this fish was extremely old. 40 pounds of fillets where cut from this fish and they were great. The SC rules and regulations have the trot liners using a very small hook in all efforts to not catch the monsters and if caught they will escape. We commonly have 10 to 15 hooks or more straightened on a daily basis. In my unprofessional opinion if you regulate the size of the hook, then you shouldn't regulate the size of the fish. What I mean is since we can only keep one over 36 inches then when have an allowable hook size. I should be legal to use a "shark" hook if I want since I have to turn loose everything but one over the 36inches. Then we will see what is actually in the lake. Personally this [censored] about throwing back the big catfish is crazy. Yeah, they have good genes but they also eat all your small game fish .... (IE..Bream, shell cracker, crappie, bass and perch.) I've caught big yellow that had as many as 2 ducks in them.

If they have limit on the number of large fish you can keep than rather than limit the size they ought to limit the type... to circle hooks only. I wonder how many gut hooked big fish get turned loose to be floaters because the trotliner already had his big fish in the box.

I can't speak for all fisherman, but we hardly every have a fish hooked anywhere but the mouth. Over the years we have adjusted to the size limit and usually don't even land the fish if he looks at or over 36 inches. We simply dehook the fish in the water and watch him swim off, but this argument isn't just for the trot liners, No law states that once you catch your first big fish you have to stop fishing for the day. Any fisherman has the potential to catch another big fish. The ethical fishing thing to do is to turn the fish loose unharmed, but that doesn't mean they do. Again the Trot liners aren't the enemy. Everyone has a right to utilize the lakes and benefit from our natural resources, but with any social group you have bad apples. I'm sure not all trot liners abide by the rules and regualtions of the states they are fishing in, but I'm also sure not all sports fisherman and guides do either. It just boils dowm to a level of integrity, you either have it or you don't.

Oh, update to the big fish, the biologist called today, the fish was 23 years old, not very young for a blue catfish... There life span is between 20 and 25 years.

Any reputable guide would have released that fish, and any others over ten pounds. I have spoken with tpwd, and have decided this is a pointless battle to pick. I have no problem with trotliners filling a freezer or harvesting for a fish fry, but it is no more sport fishing than fur trapping is recreational hunting. If you wish to keep a large fish I certainly cannot stop you, so good luck. Hope you catch a monster.

I don't understand why you would release this particular fish. I know I'm suppose to be simple minded and all but it baffles me to release this fish. We all have spend thousands of dollars chasing a trophy "once in a life time" type of fish. I can certainly understand your argument about over harvesting of fish, but we are talking about 1 fish. No one wants to see any resource depleted to any level, but harvesting a nice fish isn't gonna hurt the species. Maybe I'm speaking from a South Carolina stand point where on any given day with light tackle and a rod n reel I can catch multiple fish weighing over 40 or 50 pounds. Maybe I just don't know what its like to consider a 10 pound fish something that should be safe guarded. Please educate me, am I speaking from a bias stand point?

You are certainly not simple minded, and having grown up in Charlotte I have fished the diversion canal and lake Marion many times. The number of eating size blues in those lakes is outstanding. Much as the population is on lake tawakoni here in Texas.

At the turn of the century massive blues over 100lbs were common in places like the Mississippi and its tributaries. Due to commercial fishing practices (I.e. trotlines) the population of large blues has decreased massively while the population of small blues has increased. This is not just in blue catfish. The population of large mako sharks off the new England coast has decreased, giant white sturgeon were hit hard in the North West, and redfish were hit hard on the east coast.

In the case of redfish, and white sturgeon massive conservation efforts have started to really bring the large fish back. I would like to see the population of giant blues make a comeback. While one fish may not make that large of a difference, it seems pointless to keep him when the population of box fish is as healthy as it is, and they certainly don't taste any worse if not better.

I prefer eating the 20#'rs

Trooper I've been biting my tongue, but I see your crusade to save the "dwindling population" of big fish as someone talking out their arse about something they aren't really educated in. Yea yea we can all google everything and find info.,but here is my point. The so called 315lb cat caught out of the Missouri could be a good fish story, that was in 1866 you think they had certified scales? Then the 242 lb in 1868 you think all this is gospel? Yea I'm sure they were big fish but fisherman have stretched the truth about big fish forever. Mark twain reported seeing one at a market over 6 ft long, he was a good writer, writers have amazing imaginations. The one that was really documented by believable sources was in nov. 1897 by the U.S. National Museum and it was 150lbs. That's not far from fish we still have around. You trying to get laws pasted to "help" fish will hurt us all. Like commented earlier lets knock it down to 1 rod, and you cant use shad or perch anymore because that gives you an unfair advantage. Only worms or chicken liver may be used, and the livers have to come from free range chickens,none of them penned up abused ones. I'm for protecting our resources, but the government telling me how to fish doesn't sit well with me. Keeping that fish was up to the person that caught it not you or me or the government. If a man is within the law and wants to get his biggest fish ever, he gets a pat on the back from me. I've released my PB,38lb blue 11.4 lb LMB and 56lb yella ,but that's my fish to do with how I see fit. I've also eaten my share of 20's, so you can jump on me now if you want for killing trophies. over

Thanks for sharing blues. I'm glad you released your pb's. As I said I spoke to tpwd, got shot down, and am now ending my crusade.

The people keeping large fish will probably never catch enough to hurt the population again anyway since most of the guides CPR now.

I kept all my PB's, an 82 lb blue, 38 lb yella and 16 lb channel. They all ate fine. I have thrown several 20+ pounders back and and im sure I will contiune to, just depends on what im after that day.

Texas parks and wildlife has much more time effort money and experience in taking care of the fish than you do, thats why they shot you down, they actualy know what they are talking about.

Comparing redfish is a bad comparison to me. Reds dont breed till they reach a larger size so it depletes breeding stock. Catfish even young small ones spawn, just not as many eggs as the big ones, but heck there are thousands and thousands of little ones to every big one so it still dont matter. People just gotta keep puttin there two cents where they dont belong. Fish are fine let it be.

.

red chevy ya said it best... there are thousands and thousands of smaller ones to big one,s!!!!!! enough said, let's all start keeping them big un's and the arguement will be over !!!!!LOL!!!!to each his own... ya ain't gonna change anybodys mind including mine...

OK! DELETE THREAD

In before lock

This is unrealistic...do you realize how much baitfish those cats would eat if they were not removed from a lake? Catfish lay a gazillion eggs, and other fish do not exactly feast on them due to the hard spines on the side and on top. Keep all the catfish in the 2-10 pound range you want for the table, and release the mother lodes for releasing even more eggs...replicas can be made if you want to mount it, and if you are catching several fish like that a big lake, then I assure you there is plenty of "eating sized" fish that will taste better than one mammoth.

How many more do you think are in that same lake that are that size or bigger? Probably several...it is a rare catch because they actually got it in...what I would have really enjoyed seeing is if they caught that monster noodling! ANd if they just threw it away after catching it, then yes..wrong in so many ways. If they ate it...good for them.

They did eat the fish and DNR came and collected all the skeletal remains. The biologist contacted me yesterday to tell us that the fish was 23 years old. But whats unusual was my father told me that the fillets were awesome. We eat catfish all the time, but he said that this big guy was extremely good. You know we all have heard that the younger/smaller fish are better to eat, but this may not be true in the case of this monster.

Oh and the Yellow cats will eat other catfish to include smaller yellows. They are one of the only cannibalistic catfish species.

138lb blue only 23 years old......?

Most study's say they don't live much past 30. How old did you want it to be?

Way back when... splash, the 120-something lb catfish, didnt they say he was 21 years old? Doesnt seem out of the realm of posibility to me.

matt

That's irrelevant - I am simply stating that I think that blues will live as long as there surroundings allow them to. 30 year old catfish don't die of old age! Animals and people are always surpassing life expectancy - IMO a 138 lb blue is older than 23....

Hard to argue with DNR and biologist saying it was 23. Tests where also ran on the state record out of texoma, it was around the same age. I don't understand why fish can't die of old age, everything else can.

IMO to the people on both sides of the aisle the evidence doesn't matter until it "fits".

So your just ignoring scientific data because in your opinion the fish is older?

How old do you think I am, maybe I could get social security.

But seriously, man has no natural predator but ourselves and we die of old age some at 50 some at 100 some older some younger, you cant expect them to live forever. Alot of aquarium fish have a life expectancy of 2 years... not much.

LOL! Dyin' here! DYIN!!! LOL!

just my opinion..... i love tff trolls and there ever burning desire to start arguments...

No troll, just want to know why your opinion tops scientific research and study?

If you are some hi-fallotin ictheyologist(sp) then it may cary a little weight, but I doubt you are.

Supporting my view with sound logic and reasoning doesnt make me a troll. I like catching and cleaning and eating fish of all shapes and sizes so I will suport my side when I can.

matt

Thats Great Matt!

Hey speaking of the troll you posted it, and by the 9 pages you must have gotten at least a couple nibbles

Sorry you disagre

You want something to nibble on?

Well its gettin close to 6, I am gettin a little hungry... Why, you want to take me to dinner? Im not funny or anything but a free meal is a free meal...