I just got back fishing on the Sabine River. I caught a few fish that I have no idea what they are. Please id them for me so I can know if I can keep them next time. Also a note or to about how they taste? My Brother in law says the really big one is a gross fish to eat.

buffalo and drum, people say that drum are really good I have never eaten one. Buffalo are boney but many people swear the ribs are great. again I have never eaten one.

Which is which?

in that order top fish is a small buffalo bottom is a drum

so these have no limits or slots?

They are trash fish.

LOL your dumb...No such thing as a trash fish! Even the term Rough fish is being replaced by the term under utilized.

In the mid-to-late 19th century, commercial fishermen in the Central United States often netted and processed large quantities of river fish in their boats for sale, particularly in the Mississippi River. They would then travel many miles up or down river to deliver these fish to market. In hot summer weather, the slow, heavily loaded boats often had to be lightened quickly to ensure that the entire catch did not become spoiled before reaching market. The common practice of the time was to save the fully-processed fish, since these commanded a higher price at market. Rough-dressed fish (or fish sold "in the rough" - which means they had the internal organs removed but were not filleted) were discarded to lighten the boat, by dumping the carcasses into the river. Thus, originally a "rough fish" was a fish of any species that had been only partly processed and which could not be sold for full price. The term subsequently evolved into a derogatory term for any fish that was undesirable or unpopular.

no they do not have slot or size limits.

Is there anything I can do to Try to catch these over other fish? That Buffalo but up a good fight. Felt like reeling in a few bricks. I didn't catch the drum.

http://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/forums/31/1/Rough_Fish_Carp

....to the dark side.

they get pretty big

Buffalo is good eating, but bony, like carp. That little drum would be as good as most anything filleted and fried up. They get a little off tasting when they get over about 3 pounds, IMO.

Livin back on the bayou,we ate our weight in buffalo. Like mentioned above,the rib area is really good deep fried. Love those drum too. The netters usually brought the buffalo through the neighborhoods before he went to the fish markets. I guess he got a better price for em that way. We catch drum on dead minnows or live crawfish.

Buffalo and drum.

Drum might be one of the hardest fresh water fish to "target" as mentioned above crawfish and minnows fished near rocks also night crawlers with foil mixed in seems to work.

Smallmouth Buffalo, and Freshwater drum. As many people have mentioned, both species can make for great eating.

More important, they get really big ( Drum over 30lbs in Texas, and buffalo break 80lbs in Texas ) and they fight really hard. They're a lot of fun to catch!

And, they're both Native Texas Species. Nothing trashy about a native fish that gets big, fights harder then most, and is a lotta fun to catch!

Drum are hard to target, but Smallmouth Buffalo are often caught on sweet corn and SMALL hooks. ( Size 6, NOT 6/0 ) As they have very small mouths. They also like nightcrawlers, and are often caught on sweet flavored doughbaits as well.