Maybe I am wrong, but I thought I have read a lot of talk about the channels maybe spawning now. But I haven’t heard anything about flatheads ie: I haven’t seen or read about major battle scars yet. If this is true, I am a little confused because from what I read, channels spawn at higher temps? I don’t know, maybe it’s just the voices in my head again. 
The channels have already spawned. I dont know how quickly they grow, but I caught a ton of 3″-5″ channels today in my minnow net.
Flatheads spawn much later. 80 degrees is typical spawning temps if memory is correct. We have caught a few fish in the last couple weeks with the fresh wounds. By the calendar, it still seems early, but the water temps are where they need to be. I suspect lots of beatup fish wll be showing soon, or success will drop drasticly very soon.
Thats makes me think they are close here. Last week, especially two weeks ago the bite was very good, big and small flats were being caught. I fished a couple times last week with a few good hookups and this week the bite is off. Theres been a few decent ones being caught but nothing like two weeks ago with some real big ones being caught.
The waters dropped but they still have to eat and from the guys i’ve talked to the last few days they haven’t had much luck on the bigger ones eighter. Theres still smaller ones being caught but less of them then week befor last. Its don’t know if its the spawn or what but somethings slowed them down and im not convinced its the water level but maybe it is, the waters droped a foot in the last week.
I fished for four hours tonight with 5″ bluegills with two poles baited up in a spot thats proved to be good and not one hit. The guys on the other end of the bridge got a few small flats under 7 pounds and they said no big ones eighter. A couple of the ones i did see last week did have marks on them from being horned so maybe the spawn is close. Im curious too.
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The waters dropped …im not convinced its the water level but maybe it is, the waters droped a foot in the last week.
I was out last night and from the reports lately, I was hoping to see some rain Saturday or Sunday during the day. It’s crazy how much the river can change in a foot drop.
3-5″ channels are a year old. Right now is about the time the channels should be spawning, but they may have spawned already. My water temperature website (US Army Corps of Engineers) does not seem to be reflecting reality – it’s shown water temps in the 60s pretty much all of June. Bummer, I wanted to be able to go by that site, at least for record-keeping.
The Sutton article on the other thread seems to have it wrong temperature-wise, that’s probably where the confusion came from – flats spawn in hotter water than channels – part of the reason their range doesn’t extend as far north. Usually it’s around the end of June to the second week of July here – water temp may allow it earlier, but I think the bulk of the spawning will fall in the same dates this year – I’m pretty convinced photoperiod is a major component at least as important as temp.
Its probably the water falling thats slowed them down, maybe with the spawn getting close and them looking for the right water and area to spawn in, combination of both. If the water levels change thier going to look for safe water thats going to keep thier eggs wet.
I know they feed heavy because thier putting blood on thier eggs and they need the protiene to enrich thier eggs and i’ll bet they look for safe areas to lay thier eggs. With channels, once the water drops and stabelizes they start hitting again so maybe its the same with flatheads, probably is.
Thier still hitting but not fast and furious like they were the last two weeks. Considering how fast the waters come down its still not a bad bite, i just hit the off bite last night. I seen a 25 pounder three night ago and another guy said he seen one day befor yesterday during the day that went the same so the bites still on.
Thier going to feed to keep thier eggs healthy until they do spawn, i don’t know what the temp of the water is right now but im pretty sure its not in the 80’s, low to mid 70’s maybe. With the moon as it is maybe thier waiteing for the dark of the moon like deer do, they breed with the low light conditions of the moon so maybe flats do too.
I talked with an old farmer years ago and he said planting root crops like radishes and potatoes do better with the dark of the moon because of gravitational pull so maybe that has something to do too with faltheads spawning, the right moon, water level and temperature.
I think the moon has a big effect on whether the flathead bite is hot or cold and whether they are more willing to bite during the day. What ever it is though, I know it isn’t obvious. I also wouldn’t doubt it has an effect on their spawning too. Don’t walleye’s peak during a full moon when spawning? I know a flathead isn’t a walleye, but they are fish.
I’ve been paying attention to the fishing forecast at weather.com and what people have been posting here. There does seem to be a correlation with respect to peak times and when these fish are being caught.
As for water temp, my Googling has channels spawning 70/75-80/84 degrees while flatheads spawning from 70/75-80 degrees (lowest range found/highest range found). Although most sites say the flatheads spawn later. That would indicate to me that flatheads require temps to be sustained in this range for a longer period of time before spawning?
Sorry if I am boring you, I just find this stuff interesting to research. Some sites I found for the #s:
Channel Catfish: Life History and Biology
Reproductive Biology of the flathead catfish
Missouri Flatheads
Arkansas Ozarks
MN DNR: Flatheads
MN DNR Channels Florida U: Farm Raised Channels
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Sorry if I am boring you
We be use to it big guy.
None of the fish I caught recently have showed any signs of spawning. Not even any scares, marks or tattoos.
Our flow on P4 went up and the temp dropped almost 3 degrees (surface temp.) over night….Even the gar fish had sweaters on last night. 
Some people like to hear themselves talk. I like to watch myself write. Either that or I need a new job!
It would be nice to know how the moon comes into play, i don’t know. I like taking about this too to try to figure it out. Here on the river in the past the full moon has meant a slow hit for me when it comes to catfish. On dark nights when you can’t see your hand infront of your face has meant the best bite too me.
I can see walleyes useing the moonlight to hunt by because thier more of a sight hunter. Catfish are also sight hunters but they are smell hunters too and don’t need the light as much to feed by. Trout, smallies, pike and walleyes are defininately sight hunters, i can see catfish not needing light as much.
Any of you guys ever heard the fable floating around that flatheads only bite on live bait? here they’ll bite on almost anything. A big hook full of Crawlers, cut bait and even chicken livers, maybe these baits are close enough to live bait they take it. Never heard of one being caught on stink bait but if they were hungry enough maybe they would.
The general consensus here is full moon bad, new (no) moon good. I have heard of cutbait working well for flats, especially after the spawn, but not so much chicken livers and crawlers, unless you are talking about the ones that weigh less than 10#s.
The ones caught lately on crawlers mostly have been small ones, didn’t hear of any big ones that were caught that way, i see what your saying. What are the flats doing when the water drops, finding a new deeper location to feed in or just waiting for more stable conditions to feed again?
I know that when the waters coming up here theres more to feed on, new food coming into the water, atleast channels are that way, so that makes them hungry, why does it turn them off when the water drops, unstable conditions? I know fish are opportunistic feeders because theres not always food around, so they feed when food is coming thier way when the waters coming up. Do they go back to deeper water to wait the conditions out, then when it stabelizes they start feeding again? I can see when the waters coming up that gives them new areas to feed in so they take advantage of the higher water conditions.
Maybe when the waters dropping, because they realize thier size and don’t want to get traped in shallow water, so they head for deep water and stay there until the water stabelizes. I don’t know if they lay up in shallower water until the water stabelizes, i bet they head for deeper water and stay there until it does, then maybe go shallow again for a few hours at a time and feed. All realitive to the fishes size.
Im wondering if Gravitational pull and thier air bladders has something to do with it, but what does it do to flatheads and are the bigger ones more caceptable to it then the smaller ones or is it about equal in all falthead sizes.
I know barometric pressure effects thier bladders but how much on the big flatheads, be nice to know if the combination or pressure and the moon phases together plays on anything.
I remember I used to think dropping water was good for fishing. Maybe that is more so for lakes or other species?
There are other factors I think too with dropping water. The baitfish have less water and may be more concentrated and the fish are more well fed or maybe with less current they are more spread out, thus spreading out the predators?
I guess whatever it is that seems to make them turn off, it doesn’t matter. What matters is figuring out where they go. It’s highly doubtful that the flats in prespawn mode are feeding less. So I am thinking the deeper areas like you said are good places to start and any place that we don’t normally fish.
There was an interesting thing I found in one of the links I posted above. One study found either 20-40% of the mature females didn’t breed in a given year. 
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It would be nice to know how the moon comes into play, i don’t know. I like taking about this too to try to figure it out.
I have been doing some reading on this lately. My $.02 on the subject. The changes in pressure on fish caused by the moon is very minor compared to the pressure the water is placing on their bodies at any given point in time. The pressure increases more by them going 5 foot deeper then a massive barometric pressure change. To me, it does not seem significant.
I think the moons effect is more on the “sight” feeding fish such as walleyes, musky, etc. Flathead have small eyes for a reason, they just don’t need or use them often. For this reason, they have a distinct advantage over bait fish on the darkest nights when bait fish cannot see the predator.
This seems to make sense in my strange little world 
I’m right with you, Farmboy – I think the darker the better for roaming flats. Usually when I fish the full moon, I’m fishing a “shaded” structure. Even so, I have worse luck on full moons.
As far as dropping water – I don’t pay any attention. The fact is that a big river like the Mississippi is dropping most of the time. It shoots up to a peak and spends weeks coming down. Sudden drops are different – they reduce current so much that normal structure doesn’t have the same value to the cats/baitfish. I was out one night when the flow was reduced by half on an already low August river, and you couldn’t buy a bite – it was like the river stood still. Those are tough times, but don’t worry about the fact that the river is dropping or you’ll never get out.
Move over Farmboy! I’m in your little world too.
I agree farmboy
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I agree farmboy
Could you guys get my wife to have the same thoughts as you 
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