I will cut up a carp to use as bait. That is legal and they are great, bloody bait.

Bait: Something used to lure any wildlife resource. It is unlawful to use game fish or any part thereof as bait.

Waste of fish - It is unlawful to leave edible fish or bait fish taken from the public waters of the state to die without the intent to retain the fish for consumption or bait.

I looked harder at the two definitions, you would be able to use non-game fish. They would be considered "luring" the fish to an area.

Good luck and catch some big ones!

I would have to disagree. Carp can destroy the vegitation in most lakes and rivers leaving them barren. They are having huge issues with grass carp in the mississippi river areas.


But small carp make excellent bait.

When in doubt, call your local game warden. I have the two in my area on speed-dial.

Grass carp are completely different from the common carp that most folks catch on rod and reel.

Probably a good idea. We all should follow the law. Although we are talking semantics. But I doubt if a game warden would every do a dna test on your bait to see what kind of fish it is Thanks for your help by the way.

It is the Big Headed Carp (asian carp) that they are having so much trouble with. They are a plankton eater. They are heavy competition for threadfin and juvenile gizzard shad.

I had a Game Warden tell me, that if i caught any gar, to throw them out on the bank to die. THe water was infested with them. The people writing these laws seem to be more confused than we are.

That game warden needs to be reported.
The writing of the game laws is super complicated. It takes the state congress to approve them. The biologist do the research, and I do not know what happens in between.
But no law enforcement officer can tell you to break the law.

Ya man that is crazy.... that game warden gives the rest of them a bad name... that should have never been said. If biologists feel that they are over infested in a particular area than it will get taken care of.

White Amur/Grass carp:

We used to catch huge ones on Lake Conroe back in the early to mid 80s. Used nothing but Wheaties,wet and balled up on a large trebble hooks -w- no weight...Superior fighters too.
Here is a bit of info concerning Texas.

[excerpt from TPWD]....the grass carp has been legally introduced into at least 35 states in the US. In Texas, triploid (sterile) grass carp have been widely introduced in small private ponds and a few public waters. Diploid (non-sterile) populations have been established by escapees from legal experiments in Lake Conroe and illegal stockings. These fish are known to reproduce in the Trinity River-Galveston Bay area.
Other
Grass carp are potentially harmful to native resources. Currently, only triploid (sterile) grass carp are legal for use in Texas, and a permit is required to obtain them. Because grass carp is a potentially invasive species, an angler who catches one must immediately remove the intestines, except in waters where a valid Triploid Grass Carp Permit is in effect. In those waters, any grass carp caught must be immediately returned to the water unharmed. The herbivorous feeding habits of this species make it very difficult to catch. When landed, grass carp are excellent table fare despite their bones. The rod-and-reel record in Texas stands at 53.5 pounds. A specimen in excess of 69 pounds was landed by a bow fisher.


Hmmm... if you must remove intestines that kills it. Can you use this meat for bait then?
Doubt ill ever have that issue ...to much shad,sunfish,liver cheese and goldfish etc... oh and manufactured baits(punch/dip/dough) that work for catfish.

Using carp was never in question...

And funny story about Conroe... well not funny... back in the 80's or whenever it was, Lake conroe was overrun with rooted macrophytes, and so they has Texas A&M do some research on Triploids... well the residents of Lake Conroe were getting fed up with their property being overrun with plants and waiting for A&M biologists and researchers, so they took matters into their own hands and released diploid grass carp.... how ignorant... they couldnt have just waited for the professionals to do their work.

me....why would you do that?
I dont even kill gar when I catch them.... If your not going to eat it let it go! or use it for bait if legal...

they have a purpose in our lakes and its a shame people wouldnt take care of our fisherys any better....

Those carp ruined that lake when they ate all of the grass. It had the making of an excellent bass lake with all of the shade/cover it once had.