How To Enjoy Flathead Catfishing

Flathead catfish is an indigenous species of the United States. Although they are from the Mississippi River originally in addition to the larger rivers that flow from it, flatheads were relocated and now are observed in waters across the U.S. The omnipresence of the flathead is due to their recognition as a food as well as a game fish. This fact makes flathead catfishing doubly fun.

Flatheads are generally seen in gently flowing water such as rivers and larger streams, lakes and ponds as well. They like to live in deep water that includes pieces of fallen logs which offer comfortable places to hide.
Flathead catfish fittingly get their name because of the long, markedly compressed heads they exhibit. The eyes will be flat and oblong shaped, with the lower mandible or jaw jutting out past the upper jaw. They appear in shades of blotchy browns and yellows.

Flatheads weighing in the neighborhood of between forty and fifty pounds in many cases are hooked in estuaries, rivers and lakes. Flathead cats that are in excess of one hundred pounds have supposedly been landed as well.

Not long after they are hatched, flathead catfish develop rapidly. They are considered full-grown when they reach fifteen to nineteen inches long and could eventually live for more than twenty-five years; continuing to grow their entire lives.

These cats instinctively will consume virtually anything they are able to fit into their big maws; nevertheless, fish is the food of preference with bream being one of their favorites. In addition, they are particularly fond of live perch and sunfish; the latter to the extent of wiping out the population of some varieties of sunfish, particularly in smaller sized bodies of water, or perhaps water in which they are not indigenous. A number of secondary rivers in the state of Georgia are nearly devoid of redbreast sunfish following the addition of flatheads.

Flathead catfish typically eat either in the evening or during daytime despite the fact that the majority of catfish are usually more energetic in the evening. By utilizing light, these cats are relatively easy to lure because theyll go after the baitfish that will gravitate towards the light.

Flatheads favor deep crevices with protection around the boundaries of river bends. Try to find big log jams, fallen trees and their stumps, and stones/rocks. These are places in which they like to hole up. Be sure to cast your line below the edges and allow your lure to float in, and then be ready to hold on.

Should the outer edges be way too rough to fish, scout out some inner bends with a gentler flow. In larger bodies of water such as lakes and reservoirs, seek out the larger flatheads in locations with a lot of coverage; immersed piles of brush, for example are preferred hiding places.

Flatheads will at times move through old river and creek waterways within these lakes and reservoirs. During the night time, theyll journey through these channels and appear at the fringe of the shallows to eat. Simply place yourself next to these areas and then get ready for them to show up.

You will enjoy better results angling for flatheads if you confine your activities to the early morning, early evening, as well as at night in the summer months. Despite the fact that flatheads will take bait throughout the day, they generally wont move very far to get it.

You will want to get acquainted with the body of water in which you decide to fish and particularly where the flatheads can be found so you can get the bait close enough to them to make the effort worthwhile. Be sure your bait is on the river or lake floor. Generally speaking, flathead cats eat from the floor.