What are your Thoughts & Comments?

The In-Fisherman 2006 Guide “Catfish In-Sider” has an article titled: “On the Trail of Flatheads”. The article covers the results of a Purdue University research project that explored the habitat and movements of flathead catfish in the St Joseph River in Michigan. That river probably covers similar water characteristics to what we have here in Minnesota and Wisconsin on the St Croix River and to some extent on the Minnesota River. As the article states, “Understanding habitat requirements is crucial to completing any fishing puzzle”. I don’t know about the rest of you guys, but I have been trying to figure out these critters for a number of years and I find these research projects immensely interesting. There were two focus pieces of the article that got my attention and I am interested in what the rest of you think of the author’s interpretation of the data as it affects our local fishing strategies.

One focus of the article was on seasonal movements. They identified 50 degrees Fahrenheit as kind of a magical number for starting flatheads to move from wintering areas. In their studies, most of the tagged fish returned from wintering areas to their original capture locations from the previous summer. Distances covered in the spring were the greatest of the year averaging 1,500 yards. During the heat of summer, the tendency for long-distance movements slowed. Most of the time, they stayed close to home, foraging in the immediate area of their base. The majority of the fish moved less than 3/8 of a mile from the original capture site.

The second focus and the one that probably interests all of us Flathead chasers the most concerned daily movements. Their tracking of flatheads observed over a two month period in the summer of 2003 showed that flatheads moved out of cover, for the bigger fish that cover was complex wood structures (logjams), particularly at night. This is no surprise to any of us, but their research found that flats move around and actively hunt for food. They felt they hunted in more open areas outside their woody daytime cover. They found that the flatheads on the St Joe River chose mild, main river currents for their hunting grounds and stayed out of backwater areas. Of most importance to me was this finding and I quote from the article: “The trend was to move out from cover toward relatively shallow (less than 10 feet) open areas to feed.” The article has a great graphic titled “Summer Flathead Locations” that shows low percentage water and I have to admit I have spent many a night placing bait in what they classify as “low percentage water”.

This article has me rethinking some of my favorite cat spots and possibly changing my bait placement in some of those spots. I know I will probably fish much shallower water than I have in the past. I am interested in any thoughts or comments this In-Sider article may have generated from all of you. How about weighing in?

Steve, I just found a copy of the In-sider today. I’ll chime in after I read it. Of course, I have no where near the expertise of you, Dave, Brian, and some of the other veterans here. I’m just looking to learn as much as I can and catch some beast in the process. I can’t wait to tangle with a big one

Steve,
I have zero experience fishing for Flatheads, but in general if you’re fishing for a big predator wouldn’t you try to understand where the prey is? It would be interesting to know what the fish in that study were chasing in those shallower depths. If you knew that then you could make an educated guess about your local rivers. Just a thought!

Rootski

I have to say that the majority of my large fish 20+ were caught in shallow….less than 10ft some times a shallow as 2-3ft All around dusk when they are on thier feeding runs.
To keep catching fish in the same size range makes me wonder If I might not want to change my location or tech to find bigger fish. location location location

Interesting post.
thanks
Larry

Rootski,

Everything is prey to a 15+ pound flat. That’s what makes it hard(er) to locate just one type of area.

I became a true believer in shallow water last year because of a very educational night out with CatdadMN…one of the few true veterans.

In my little mind, it seems that at dusk, they start moving to feed. That’s when the make a loop of some kind..through the shallows…fill their belly’s and head home to snooze some more before making another “run” in the morning.

I don’t believe they have a “feeding ground” that they go to, more of a eat as you go buffet.

Quote:

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Everything is prey to a 15+ pound flat

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I guess if you’re the top predator in the river, then that has to be correct!

Thanks
Rootski

One thing that I’ve heard from an old River Rat…but I haven’t had the opportunity to try yet is looking for feeding gar. When the shad are schooled up and a group of gar are attecking them, he said fish down stream of them for channel cats and they tend to feed on the left over or wounded.

A bit off topic. Sorry.

My biggest flattie ever was caught in 4 feet of water nearly 600 yards from where I think her daytime lair is. This area is a shelf off a long rock wall with a gravel bottom. I catch a lot of fish here and there is absolutely no cover you would think of to fish. Rootski is correct in saying the food is the key.

There is some interesting stuff in the Insider about snags vs. rocks for flatheads. Fishhead talks quite a bit about it. There’s also an article about “urban catting” that is quite good and talks about a guy that catches flats where there is basically a vertical cement wall going into the river. Good stuff!

I really should read that thing. I got last years and this years in the mail a few weeks back, along with a DVD. I am itching to hit a certain verticle wall that I think will be pretty hot once the water hits 50. They’ll still be in a fairly tight school as they awaken from their winter slumber*.

FYI, no it is not that certain place. This is a place I have never fished with any of my fellow cat companions.

*Disclaimer: I think

I havent had a chance to check out the guide. I will check it out when I have a chance. I am sure I have much I can learn from it.. we all can.

I dont care if your fishing a creek or a reservoir. The more knowledge you can soak in over time, the easier it is to locate the fish you are looking for. I think the key to chasing flatheads overall is just to have the ability to stay versitile and change with the fish. Its not always as important to stay mobile as it is versitile… many experienced cat men will disagreee with that statement because most guys like to run and gun..

We all fish a little differently and have adapted to the environments that we fish. When I am out of my normal environment, I depend on all my experience from the past, and all the information I have soaked in over time to help locate the fish… and then I will ajust my presentation from there. When I am in my *normal environment*(industrial, city, and man-made structure), I still have to stay versitile to catch the fish that are right below me because they dont always do the same thing from one day to the next.

I’d like to see a description of the river – I guess I’ll have to get the article. What I was thinking is that it says “relatively shallow – less than 10 feet” which can mean different things based upon the river. The Mississippi is very, very diverse. There are great shallow spots I’ve fished that are basically “tables” that stack up with baitfish at night, and there are deepwater ledges that hold bruisers year round. And EVERYTHING inbetween. I’d say that I focus on the shallow water in prespawn, but that’s about the only time of year that depth is a primary concern. I caught a 47 pounder in “relatively shallow” water in prespawn, and a 50 around spawning time. But I put my nephew on a 49 in late summer in 35 feet of water, and my own personal best was a fall fish that came from 40+ feet of water.

I’ve always felt that the baitfish issue is not emphasized enough by catters. I know that the prevailing thought seems to be that the current/cover characteristics dictate where flatheads hold, and that there are baitfish literally everywhere out there. But my thinking is that bigger fish take better spots – that’s both why they’re bigger and a big part of the advantage of being bigger. The best spots have to be the cover that’s closest to the best baitfish magnets. Cover adjacent to spots that just consistently have good baitfish populations should hold the biggest cats. Of course there are seasonal and water leverl trends to that too.

One of my favorite activities is baitfish fishing – I get to sweep new spots for snags with the light tackle, and get some idea of how many fish are in a spot. Of course baitfish congregate differently at night, and I rarely fish them then. I do keep my eyes open, though!

I like the “versatile” comments above from Fisher Dave – good point. It doesn’t exactly point us in any direction, though!