Least favorite fish to catch

[artimus001 0]

i caught a Spiny Soft Shell Turtle once while out fishing for catfish. it was listed as a threatened or endangered species at the time. i was not happy about that one at all.

[WVUontheFLY 0]

The fish that turn out to be logs or boulders, have had many of those while musky fishing... Or the fish that break you off in those same structures

[Chuck McFarlane 0]

Snakehead. I really don't like trying to get my fly back. Mean looking things. Got to hand it to them though they can be pretty heart stopping top water.

[Tim Shovel 0]

Yeah, heard their a real pain to deal with, destroying the ecosystem to

[mikechell 0]

Yeah, heard their a real pain to deal with, destroying the ecosystem to

So far ... they don't seem to be "destroying the ecosystem". Many invasive species tend to balance out ... to become part of the system rather than overtake it. While it might not prove to be that way forever, at the present time, the Snakehead has become another game species.

[troutguy 0]

Here in SC we are subject to a ticket if you put a Snakehead back.

 

http://www.dnr.sc.gov/invasiveweeds/snakehead.html

 

We have had Pacu caught in Lake Wylie and other places. One in SC was over 30 inches.

 

My friend caught a Copperhead trout fishing. That was ugly. Especially after he realized it wasn't a banded water snake.

[add147 0]

Mudcats or as some folks up north call them Bullheads! Nasty tasting fish although up north I have ate them. My grandfather lived up in Arnolds Park, Iowa and he used to smoke them and they were delicious on crackers and a piece of cheese but the ones in the south are just plain yuck!!! I sure miss my Grandpas on both sides.

[troutguy 0]

Add147 mudcats? Do you mean catfish, the brown bullhead or a bowfin? As long as the water was OK bullheads were really tasty. Bowfin not so much

[Blackwater Virgil 0]

This one's a no-brainer for me. I had about a 6 lb. dogfish (grindle, bowfin) nearly take off the tip end of my middle right finger once. I had it in the net laying across my knees, and reached back to dad to get the pliers to unhook it, and the devlish @#$%^&* took that moment to thrash around very violently, and latched onto the tip of my finger with predictable results! The tip of that finger was shreded. I kept fishing, though, wrapped a hankie around it, tied it on with some line, and fished with a throbbing hand that also gave me a headache. I was young then, and wasn't going to go home where I knew Mom would be dabbing stuff on it that would burn and hurt even MORE!

 

I'll hate those @#$%^&* critters 'til the day I die!

[Chuck McFarlane 0]

Oh gosh I forgot about dogfish. Spiny dogfish. Caught a little guy once mooching for kings. Was in a rush to get lines back in the water and the little guy flipped his tail around and stuck me in the forearm as I was trying to unhook him. I knew about the sharp little teeth but wasn't prepared for that. The spine was located behind the dorsal toward the tail. For a short time I felt okay but after a few minutes the pain was just throbbing! Lasted the entire day. Throbbing head pain too. Don't know if it was poison but sure felt like it. Definitely one to put on my hate to catch list.

[mikechell 0]

... dogfish (grindle, bowfin) ...

 

 

Oh gosh I forgot about dogfish. Spiny dogfish.

Two different "dogfish" here.

Virgil is talking about the freshwater Bowfin. Chuck is talking about the saltwater species of shark, I believe.

[shoebop 0]

I gotta tell ya, bowfin taste pretty good! After throwing a bunch back, we decided to keep one to see if they were any good for table fare. The meat was white and delicate and not at all fishy. I recommend giving it a try.

[mikechell 0]

I gotta tell ya, bowfin taste pretty good! After throwing a bunch back, we decided to keep one to see if they were any good for table fare. The meat was white and delicate and not at all fishy. I recommend giving it a try.

I've heard that Bowfin is good, if you clean it and prepare it right away. There's no storing it. You can't freeze it, refrigerate it, or even let get cool after cooking. It will either become rubbery, or get all mushy.

That's what I've "heard" or read ... I've never tried it myself. Too many great tasting Sunfish to worry about keeping a big, mean fish.

[artimus001 0]

how do you prepare sunfish? whole or filleted?

[mikechell 0]

Filleted, always. Although I might lose a little "meat" around the bones, the pure culinary joy of a clean bite of fried fillet is well worth it. Most of the fish I catch will provide about 4 or bites per fillet. I have filleted fish small enough to provide only a bite or so. Still was more than worth it, to NOT deal with bones in my fish.