Latest Issue Of Virginia Wildlife: Northern Snakeheads 2024
Micro reply :
The latest issue of Virginia Wildlife has a short article on the Northern Snakehead.
It seems largemouth bass, bluegill and pumpkinseed each comprise less than 1% of the diet of SHs. Killifish seem to be the preferred food. White perch also seem to represent a decent portion of the diet. The article also has a far less alarming tone than one heard a few years ago. Seems the Northern Snakehead aren't the plague once feared. The size of the fish in the photos must provide incredible action on bass rigs. The fish LOOK awesome. And I understand they are delectable.
Maybe a snakehead trip is in my near future.
Dan: reply :
This is the same thing us NOVA guys have been saying for a year or two. Just ask John Odenkirk, the guy must be one of the biggest NSH experts in the country and he doesn't seem to think they are the "frankenfish" that they were made out to be at all.
Micro, what kind of boat do you have? I'll send you a list of ramps with access to water that your boat can handle.
Micro reply :
I have a 1548 Tracker Grizzly with a 15hp outboard and 55# trolling motor.
BTW, anything that eats a few white perch can't be a bad thing. I'm not sure if white perch are overpopulated on the Potomac, but I tend to think there are more of them in my neck of the woods than there ought to be.
Dan: reply :
You could easily launch and fish several of the creeks on the Potomac that hold large amounts of snakeheads. First off I would suggest Pohick, Occoquan, and Mattawoman. All have launches that you could use to fish areas that have lots of snakeheads and are protected enough for you to use your boat without having to fish the main river which could be a bit much for a 15hp outboard. I've seen a picture of an 18lb+ NSH caught out of Pohick.
As for the white perch, they are abundant during the spring run but other than that I don't think they stick around the river too much. I am a huge fan of catching white perch but most of the time I fish for them in saltwater/brackish water in creeks off the bay.
mudkart reply :
On 6/6/2011 at 11:35 AM, Dan: said:You could easily launch and fish several of the creeks on the Potomac that hold large amounts of snakeheads. First off I would suggest Pohick, Occoquan, and Mattawoman. All have launches that you could use to fish areas that have lots of snakeheads and are protected enough for you to use your boat without having to fish the main river which could be a bit much for a 15hp outboard. I've seen a picture of an 18lb+ NSH caught out of Pohick.
As for the white perch, they are abundant during the spring run but other than that I don't think they stick around the river too much. I am a huge fan of catching white perch but most of the time I fish for them in saltwater/brackish water in creeks off the bay.
X2, I'd launch from Pohick and make a left to the dense veggies. Shouldn't take you long at all. Work those north/north east towards Ft. Belvoir.
Belle Haven is another option, quite suited to your ride.
I would throw top water frogs all day (buzz and hollow), you'll likely catch some nice LMB to boot.
Bigs reply :
the problem I find is they ruin perfectly good baits. Not so much crankbaits but ten dollar frogs especially. They might not be as bad as some had originally thought as far as impacting the river as a fishery but they are pesky to deal with in general. They slime the boat up real bad, the livewells too and you wont get your bait back until you take the snakehead home and chop his head off. And half the time the frog is ruined beyond repair. So if you have one great frog thats working for you and a snakehead gets it down his throat then you may as well find something else that will work for you. Best bet is to have 2 or 3 of everything that works to be on the safe side 
I heard a few of the FLW guys saying they couldnt stop catching snakeheads this weekend, to the point where they were catching one after another.
beergogglin reply :
Is it legal to throw snakeheads back?
kgfisher reply :
Caught a 4 lber. out of Abel Lake on a baby brush hog! They were swimming amongst other largemouth bass. The bass didn't seem threatened by them.
endless reply :
On 6/30/2011 at 4:11 AM, kgfisher said:Caught a 4 lber. out of Abel Lake on a baby brush hog! They were swimming amongst other largemouth bass. The bass didn't seem threatened by them.
You sure it was a snakehead and not a bowfin?? Not saying it's not impossible since I believe we have em here at this local pond. It has something similar if not a snakehead plus bowfins. My buddy show me his pic which looked like a snakehead by color and bottom fin and then not to long after his pic, the buddy watch me pull out a bowfin from same pond and said definitely not the same fish.
If they are getting into lakes how so? I know for this pond they have to be transported but for lakes can they get into lakes through rivers?
Dan: reply :
On 6/30/2011 at 4:11 AM, kgfisher said:Caught a 4 lber. out of Abel Lake on a baby brush hog! They were swimming amongst other largemouth bass. The bass didn't seem threatened by them.
PICS!
BASSclary reply :
Rumor has it if you take it dead to the game warden you get a reward? Cam anyone confirm or deny this?
tomustang reply :
On 6/30/2011 at 4:04 AM, beergogglin said:Is it legal to throw snakeheads back?
According to Virginias game and fish:
QuoteAnglers are not required to report snakeheads nor are they required to kill them if caught, but the Department asks that the fish be reported and killed if possible. However, if an angler wishes to keep a legally caught northern snakehead, the fish must be killed to be in possession, and the angler must call the hotline and report the angler's last name, date of catch, location of catch and size. Kill the fish by:
tomustang reply :
On 6/6/2011 at 9:49 AM, Dan: said:This is the same thing us NOVA guys have been saying for a year or two. Just ask John Odenkirk, the guy must be one of the biggest NSH experts in the country and he doesn't seem to think they are the "frankenfish" that they were made out to be at all.
Micro, what kind of boat do you have? I'll send you a list of ramps with access to water that your boat can handle.
I agree with the non-frankenfish, but it still is an adaptable species for water conditions, has few predators, and takes some of the food from other fish. Not something you'd want to overrun.
Sam reply :
Micro, ask the geese where the Snakeheads are.
They will tell you.
Maybe we can go on the Chick in July. I will get back to you after the 4th.
Take care. 
Bigbarge50 reply :
Has anyone here in the greater DC area taken any snakeheads this year? Have not been the hot topic they have been in the past it seems, and those reports seem to tell a positive tale. Just curious if anyone has caught some this year?
intheweeds reply :
Just caught this 14 pounder the other day with a Rage Tail Anaconda.
Sam reply :
On 7/10/2011 at 9:30 AM, intheweeds said:Just caught this 14 pounder the other day with a Rage Tail Anaconda.
Super. Outstanding. Great. You did good!!!!
Dan: reply :
That is a big one!
I've caught 2 so far this year. I've seen probably 3 times that many in my recent trips and also missed a couple on the hookset.
Captain Shane Procell reply :
On 7/10/2011 at 9:30 AM, intheweeds said:Just caught this 14 pounder the other day with a Rage Tail Anaconda.
I can only imagine how that fish fought!!!!
intheweeds reply :
Thanks guys. Yeah, this thing put up a huge fight. It was quite a battle. I hooked it real close to the boat in about a foot or so of water. We used a net at the boat but it ate right through it. The weed bed we were fishing was full of snakeheads. My buddy caught one about 5 min after I did. You could see them rolling everywhere. Good fight but a real bummer when you are trying to bass fish.
Dan: reply :
Some of the ones I've caught barely fought at all. It's very strange. Sometimes they run, I've seen them jump, but other times they just roll on their side like a walleye.
robsbell reply :
Ive been catching 1 per outing this year fishing the Occoquan and Belmont Bay area. Biggest so far 16 lbs on a Zoom Speed Craw.
intheweeds reply :
On 7/13/2011 at 9:51 AM, rsb77 said:Ive been catching 1 per outing this year fishing the Occoquan and Belmont Bay area. Biggest so far 16 lbs on a Zoom Speed Craw.
The Occoquan is where I caught mine. I have only fished that area a few times but every time there was at least one snakehead caught. rsb77 a 16 pounder is a monster, WTG. Does anyone know what the record snakehead is for the state? I just wonder how big they will get in the river.
mudkart reply :
These are the largest documented snakeheads I've seen this year.
http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeqbewt/id11.html
I think the one that came out of Pohick last year was even bigger, but i don't have a link to the pic.
The only one i've caught this year was from Pohick.
endless reply :
I might just have to make it a fishing trip for just one of these. I need to get my bigger boat back on water. So I can fish the Potomac river. I know my brother whats to go and hit up the Occoquan. If I remember correctly you can catch them at Aquia landing or at Fairview beach? But aren't both of those on Potomac and if so do you still have to register with Maryland? Also both spot are freshwater right or did they change that too?
Dan: reply :
Here are a few that I've caught this summer.
Rocky1965 reply :
On 8/3/2011 at 6:22 AM, Dan: said:Here are a few that I've caught this summer.
NICE!!!
DAN where'd you catch those?
quanjig reply :
I know!!
Bigbarge50 reply :
KIllin it Dan, nice work. Think I in the same boat as everyone, would love details. The details I am interested in is less where or how, but lbs and how was the fight!
Any end of summer sale happening at your store sometime soon?
Dan: reply :
weights were about 6#,9#, and 5# respectively. All were caught on rage tail toads if I recall correctly. They were caught in various shallow creeks off the Potomac. 
I caught them all in shallow water choked by weeds or lilies. They all hit the bait with a vengeance but after that not much more than a few seconds of fight.
Probably gonna be a while before tackle gets marked down to clearance. It only happens once a year now. If it works like last year, we'll have an additional sale from the clearance prices late in the year.
VABasser reply :
I'll admit I've become addicted to catching snakeheads this summer. The last couple weeks I've gone out I've purely been snakeheadin, although you always catch some bass doing it. I never used to like catching them, too much of a bother or they would break you off. I'd just kill them and throw them back. But I heard too much about them being good to eat, so about a month ago I kept one and filleted it. No surprise they are great to eat. Before even targeting them, I was catching a lot more this year than in the past. Caught a few on traps in the spring, chatterbaits, I caught one about 11 lbs on a senko pretty early in the summer and having that thing pull drag like it did helped fuel my desire to catch a bigger one. The past 2 weeks is when I went out for the first time telling myself I was only going to fish for snakeheads. It's addicting. You get one of them 10lbs plus leaping out of the water and pulling drag, it's a rush. Dan you're right, sometimes though they are just dead weight on the end of the line. I saw that about two weeks ago with two I saw up shallow swimming around an area in circles. I guess guarding fry or protecting a bed or something? I picked them both off with a spro, but considering one was about 10.5lbs and the other 6, they didn't fight much at all. Once they got to the boat they thrashed around some, but no big leaps or runs. I just figured that they were worn out from spawning or whatever it was they were doing.
I've just been throwing assorted brands/color frogs for them (river 2 sea, spro, snag proof). Black is what I've thrown the most. Generally a slower retrieve with pauses. Shallow up in grass (hydrilla mostly up that shallow) like everyone else has said they are there. It can be slow sometimes just throwin that frog over and over, but if you throw it long enough you are bound to get one. And when you get a big one on, it's worth it. Be rigged up properly though unless you want to lose a bunch of baits. I lost 3 frogs to them by them cutting through my braid before I said enough and went and bought 40lb saltwater mono leader. I had a knot fail on a big 10lbs+ one a couple days ago, but other than that, no more lost baits with that leader. Keep a close eye out if you're fishin for them. As always in fishing polarized glasses are a must. Sometimes you can see them suspended near the surface. Or sometimes you'll see their big dorsal fins fanning out of the water. Not really sure what they are doing when I see that, I've thrown to them, but they dont seem to hit when they are doing that. I'd like to compare some more notes about fishin for them with some of yall who've fished for them. Maybe learn some more about their habits so we can catch more. Here's a couple pictures of some I've caught lately. I've got 3 over 10 pounds in the boat this summer, broke 2 definite over 10 off hard to judge size beyond that, but I haven't broken that 12lb mark. That is kind of the mark I set for myself. Hopefully a couple more trips and I can break that.
Rocky1965 reply :
Hell!!! now thats the way to do it!
Dan: reply :
Awesome fish VABasser!
steveb1 reply :
I've caught a few Snakehead this year and last. Common patterns - very shallow weedy still water. They will attack just about anything that moves near them, so save your expensive frogs and throw plastics. Pretty much anything rigged weedless, but I use buzz frogs that can be presented in a variety of ways, buzz it across the top of the grass, or let sink into the holes, or twitch along the bottom. Target very very very shallow water, over two feet and you're too deep.
Traveler2586 reply :
On 8/16/2011 at 8:31 AM, steveb1 said:I've caught a few Snakehead this year and last. Common patterns - very shallow weedy still water. They will attack just about anything that moves near them, so save your expensive frogs and throw plastics. Pretty much anything rigged weedless, but I use buzz frogs that can be presented in a variety of ways, buzz it across the top of the grass, or let sink into the holes, or twitch along the bottom. Target very very very shallow water, over two feet and you're too deep.
I agree, save your good stuff, IMHO, Snakehead will hit anything that moves near them, you could tie a hook to a stick of driftwood and get one. I got a 3 lb one on a black and white jitterbug one evening. As quoted, use common Bass patterns and baits; very shallow, still or slow moving water, along the weed-line and in the pockets. I think they get deeper in the weeds during the stronger current. Once I watched a SH come up from behind my frog like it was sniffing it, I twitched the bait and the SN got interested, I twitched again and it took the bait. I don't see much action from them until they see my boat.
Cheers, Eric
Traveler2586 reply :
On 7/4/2011 at 2:17 PM, Tom D. said:According to Virginias game and fish:
Quote
Anglers are not required to report Snakehead nor are they required to kill them if caught, but the Department asks that the fish be reported and killed if possible. However, if an angler wishes to keep a legally caught northern Snakehead, the fish must be killed to be in possession, and the angler must call the hotline and report the angler's last name, date of catch, location of catch and size. Kill the fish by:
This is a little confusing. This pass summer (2011) I had a boat side inspection from a MD DNR officer, and after seeing a blood stain on my carpet he asked if I had caught a Snakehead, I had. I said they were so #@*& messy I feel like just cutting the hook; he said "if you catch it, you kill it",...."If you have it in your boat (within your gunnel's) you have possession of it".... "do not release a live Snakehead".
This is what I've been going by, can we now release a live Snakehead back into the water?
Cheers, Eric
tomustang reply :
Well you'd have to check the 2012 book since my post was cited last year. In your case though the officer was wrong since written law is rule, mistakes happen though
Traveler2586 reply :
On 3/17/2012 at 10:30 AM, Tom D. said:Well you'd have to check the 2012 book since my post was cited last year. In your case though the officer was wrong since written law is rule, mistakes happen though
I went to the MD DNR home page and found the following in the 2012 MD Fishing Guide
"
Please Catch and Kill Snakeheads
The non-native Northern Snakehead population is thriving in the Potomac River and its tributaries after
being illegally introduced several years ago.
Maryland fishing regulations allow the keeping of snakeheads, so long as the fish is immediately killed and
its head removed, or the fish is gutted, or the gill arches removed, or the fish is filleted. The capture and
possession of dead and dismembered snakeheads is not subject to any season, creel limit or size limit.
DNR asks anglers to report any snakeheads caught outside of the Potomac River and it tributaries or
upstream of Great Falls by contacting Don Cosden at
dcosden@dnr.state.md.us or call (410) 260-8287. This will
help DNR track the expansion of the species.
Anglers in Virginia waters who catch snakeheads in any
waters must immediately kill the fish and report the catch
to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fish hot
line (804) 367-2925.
Federal law prohibits the import of live snakeheads to the
U.S. or across state lines without a permit from the US Fish
and Wildlife Service.
If you catch a northern snakehead with a blue tag, please
report it to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service at (800) 448-
8322." end quote
tomustang reply :
Must have gotten worse since its now kill on sight. It would be nice if they made tournaments out of the species and gave some prizes out, perhaps even allow free state licensing in help curb the growing problem
Traveler2586 reply :
On 3/17/2012 at 7:24 PM, Tom D. said:Must have gotten worse since its now kill on sight. It would be nice if they made tournaments out of the species and gave some prizes out, perhaps even allow free state licensing in help curb the growing problem
From reading MD DNR news Snakeheads (SH) are spreading throughout the Chesapeake Bay; something some thought would not happen, they thought the SH would be confined to the Middle Potomac and there was no talk of it spreading to the Upper Potomac.
I too read the report on what the SH is feeding on and that is good news; but we have to remember that data was collected from recent samples, and we need long term tracking of feeding habits over the entire range of the SH before we can have a clear picture of this fish. Some will tell you that this fish is still adapting to it new environment and it will by nature select the habit that produces the best result with the least energy expended. I predict, over time, we will see the SH moving both up, and down, the East coast via the inter-coastal waterway.
I agree with you "It would be nice if they made tournaments out of the species and gave some prizes out" to help draw attention to controlling this fish. Both MD and VA could hold state sponsored "Open" tournaments and award prizes for Largest fish, most fish, largest weight, etc. We could even have dock-side cook-offs where anglers cook their catch to win Top Chef.
With that said, and given the reproductive rate of the SH, we have to come to grips with the fact the SH is here to stay.
Cheers, Eric
outdoorsman110 reply :
I caught a 10lb and a 6lb snakehead last summer on a livetarget frog and a H&H spinner, on the Potomac.
outdoorsman110 reply :
doubtful.. I fish that lake and catch bowfins on berkley hogs.On 6/30/2011 at 4:11 AM, kgfisher said:Caught a 4 lber. out of Abel Lake on a baby brush hog! They were swimming amongst other largemouth bass. The bass didn't seem threatened by them.
MCS reply :
Thought this was interesting read. You don't hear that much, at least when I lived up there, about them as quality table fare.
http://news.msn.com/...nkenfish-eat-em
But dang $26 dollars a plate LOL I think for that price I will stick softshell sandwich or a crab cake, hon.
flyfisher reply :
I have always wanted to go target the snakeheads and i think i might.....any ideas on places that are kayak friendly??
quanjig reply :
Pohick, take a left and go skinny, weedy and they are there!!
flyfisher reply :
Anyone know what they do in the winter? I am assuming they slow down like all other cold blooded animals but i didn't know if they were still somewhat active in the cooler months.....
quanjig reply :
If you can find some warm water discharge areas, they will be there!
Traveler2586 reply :
On 11/29/2012 at 2:03 AM, flyfisher said:Anyone know what they do in the winter? I am assuming they slow down like all other cold blooded animals but i didn't know if they were still somewhat active in the cooler months.....
Look to the Maryland's Who's Who thread post 1787 + for some tips: http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/43647-marylands-whos-who/page__st__1785
I've only found them in shallow slack waters around wood & weed.
related Southeast Bass Fishing topic
previous topic
most viewed Southeast Bass Fishing topic
© 2024 - fishing.qciss.net. All Rights Reserved.