ok i am new here but not new to fishing, but i am confused about the types of cats that are out there. its probably the diff names that get me. so theres channels, blues, and flatheads...am i right? i know flatheads are aka yellas as well, and one website lists them as mudcats..is that right or a totally diff deal altogether? or is what usually called a mudcat really a bullhead? last thing is the site i referenced to shows the blue cats are aka channel cat...can some1 help me? lol

Try this link should help
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/landwater/water/aquaticspecies/inland.phtml

You are right flathead,yellow and mud cats are the same but blues and channel are not the blue gets alot bigger on the web site explanes it all
hope this helps

thats the same site i was using for info beforehand, i think it confused me more than anything..lol

Does "mud cat" refer to a bullhead or a flathead? I've seen different people use that term different ways, I think.

It might help if you think of em as Humpback blues and spotted channels.I say this because the blues back has a hump right behind the head and the channels are a greyer color and have a few spots on em I hope that helps

smile...i think thats what i am trying to figure out myself..i assume that a "mudcat" is a bullhead; and a flathead is a "yella" and a channel is...well a channel..am i on the right track here

I've never heard a flathead called a mudcat before. Usually mudcat is a negative term for bullheads. Now to complicate matters even more, there are yellow, black and brown bullheads. They're simple to ID, mostly head and small body. Most you'll catch are yellow bullheads. You'll notice the head immediately and you'll learn quick not to stick your fingers in their mouth. Notice the big bullish head and the smallish body in relation like this:


Flatheads are also called yellow cat, op, Appaloosa, Ap..... These too are easy to ID all other catfish have an overbite and non flat heads. The op will have a "Flat head" and an under bite like this:

Blue cats and large channel cats can get confusing because as channels get larger, they loose their spots. Both have a forked tail but focus on the anal fin (the fin on the under side of the tail)On blue cat, this fin will have a straight edge and over 30 rays like this:



On a channel it's more rounded and has 24-29 rays like this:

Come on guys, PLEASE stop refering to a yella cat or flathead, as a mudcat. I get a little defencive....LOL. Some, call these cats ugly also. I get all irritated. I have to start explaining to folks about their diet and what great preditors they are. I beleive their underbite is proof they are not bottom feeders, I mean, how can they scoop anything off the bottom with a mouth like that?
I am just shooting the bs. I must have a problem with fishing, for my favorite species or something, I dont know. I just dont want them to get a complex or something and quit bitting. LOL

from the wed site:
Pylodictis is Greek meaning "mud fish", and olivaris is Latin for "olive-colored". Flathead catfish are typically pale yellow (hence the name "yellow cat") to light brown on the back and sides, and highly mottled with black and/or brown.
Not too ugly well maybe!! LOL

A Flathead has a face only it's mother and BigYella could love.

But, never have I heard one of these fine predators referred to as a "Mudcat".

I gotta stand up with BigYella on the thread where he described a flathead as one of the best eating fish out there.

But, I can also take a mess of 12-15" bullheads like what Brewboy shows in the picture above and make a dang nice meal out of them.

I Googled a little for mudcat, flathead, and bullhead, and found that mudcat is used for at least three species of catfish, depending on who's doing the talking and where they're from.

Some folks call bullheads mudcats and are surprise to hear that flatheads are sometimes called mudcats. Other people call flatheads mudcats and are surprised to hear that bullheads are called mudcats. And to top it all off, in North Carolina some people call white catfish mudcats. Go figure.

I didnt even realize there was such a thing as bullhead. We had a pond years ago that went dry and it had all these deformed looking catfish. All about 12" long, with a big head that dwarfed the body. I thought it was channel cats whose heads kept growing with age, but the body was stunted due to lack of food. Obviuosly bullheads. Yella cats has always been the term I heard from my father and fishing buddies here in Granbury. Never referred to as flatheads. Flathead is an accurate discription though. I use to get channel and blues confused, even though I always called them channels. Fact is, there are no blues in my part of the river. Or at least I've never caught one that I was aware of.

My daughter caught a bullhead recently that was about 14 inches long and as big around as a baseball. The body looked fat compared to the head. I think the head/body size thing depends mainly on how much food is available.

Bullheads are amazing little critters. I ahve seen them come alive after being burried in the mud for a long time between rains. Most creeks are dry in South Texas but when we would geta rain and water would pool for a week or two we see them and then they'd disappear until the next rain.

Alan

try this fun link for a list of whate the state recognizes.

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/fishboat/fish/programs/fishrecords/freshwater/fwunr.phtml


3 bullheads and 5 cats i think