Wipers

I stumbled into a good wiper bite last evening, and they were a blast to catch. What fighters! They all were 19″-20″. I released them all, but I was told later that they are very good to eat. Anyone ever try them?

Just to let everyone know, I’m not a meat hunter. I keep a few crappies and bluegills for the table, but most of my fishing is catch and release.

JP care to say where the wiper bite was? Id sure like to get into some of those if its close to S.E. Iowa.

by whipers you mean silvers am i correct and if so i heard they were good too but i was also told that when you clean them to remove the red meat that is on the fillet

I am guessing Lake McBride for the wipers. My next door neighbor is out there most evenings. No kids and his wife doesn’t seem to mind? Trolling getting occasional walleyes and wipers. He says those wipers put up an unbelievable fight.I am going to try it soon!

Yes it was Macbride. They were chasing shad big time Friday night and they were hitting well. I thought I had it figured out and even thought I had a little area where they were funnelling the shad. We went back to the same place at dusk again Saturday night with high expectations and nothing. I’ve run into them before but there really doesn’t seem to be much of a pattern as they’re as nomadic as the shad they feed on. They are a blast to catch though. They have all the underwater fight of a good smallie, minus the acrobatics.

Since these are hybrids, do they reproduce? That will factor into my decision to keep a few of these or not.

I have never ate them but like Matt said just remove that red and they taste great is what I’ve heard. They are great fighters and a blast to catch. Real fighters.
Thanks, Bill

I’ve never caught a smallmouth, so can’t make a comparison…However, how many smallmouth are there over 10#, ’cause where I live (central Ne) 10# wipers are common. Have caught dozens in the 12#-15# class, and can only say you’d better go with good equipment and retie after 2 fish or they will put a HURTIN’ on you and your $40 rod/reel combo from walmart. They’ll fry your drag on cheap reels, leave your heart racin’ and your knees shakin’!!!! My wiper rig of choice, PENN spinning reel/12# BerkleyXT, Cabelas 7′ med.heavy fisheagle2 rod. These are open water fish that’s how I get by with 12# line…

They are very good to eat, not as good as walleye but still good. Taste just like white bass. No they cannot reproduce, but they still go through the same spawning behaviors as white bass. Although I believe there has been one or two cases where they actually sucessful documented, not sure but i believe so. Basically every wiper you catch came out of a tank. They’re open water hunters that travel in schools but they will pin schools of shad or alewife up against some structures especially dams and concrete walls. In the concrete inlets around here they even have ambush spots like sharp corners on walls and anywhere else a shad my not be able to see them waiting. Inlets and outlets to waterbodys tend to be “the spots” especially the inlets. They do get big around here, my biggest is 14 lbs. with a bunch more over 10. I believe the state record is somewhere around 20lbs. Look up steve lytles website and you’ll see a bunch of the past state records, he tends to be the wiper king of this state. Great fish and the fish I tend to go after the most…..

What the hell is a wiper Is that a White Bass/ Striper Cross just curious

Yep

Sounds like a White bass on steroids I love catching whities but that whiper fishing sounds like a blast