Potomac River Snakehead Fishing

[DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only]

X2,

 

However, to the best of my knowledge Catch & Release of Snakeheads is only in Va. waters, not in Maryland.  Maps show the PRFC boundary markers for the main Potomac if your interested in where the Va. waters end.

I was referring more to the Occoquan reservoir which is all in VA. Post the boundaries though for people who may catch them in the river and not know.

thanks Traveler2586,

J-

[dave]

Please copy and paste the MD regulation that mandates the killing of northern snakehead.

 

(hint...there is none...if you find it,  I stand corrected)  The verbiage in the text and in videos says that you SHOULD,  not that you have to kill Northern Snakehead.

 

Illegal to have in your livewell alive.  Illegal to transport alive.  Not Illegal to catch and release.

[Traveler2586]

Please copy and paste the MD regulation that mandates the killing of northern snakehead.

 

(hint...there is none...if you find it,  I stand corrected)  The verbiage in the text and in videos says that you SHOULD,  not that you have to kill Northern Snakehead.

 

Illegal to have in your livewell alive.  Illegal to transport alive.  Not Illegal to catch and release.

 

"What can you do? If you catch a northern snakehead, kill it and DO NOT put it back in the water. If the snakehead has a tag, measure the length, make note of the exact location of capture, and call the toll free number printed on the tag. Information that you provide is important in determining control and management strategies."

 

Bottom of the page at:  http://dnr2.maryland.gov/fisheries/Pages/snakehead.aspx

 

This is just one of many Maryland DNR statements.

[dave]

The key is in the words.  "what CAN you do?"   I saw this "statement" and it is just that,  a statement.  It is not a regulation or law.  The only regulation is not to possess live snakehead.

 

I am just pointing out the difference.  Most fisherman are mislead by the the "statements" and assume "regulation."   The government can't regulate that you kill anything.  They can ask you to kill but,  not make you do it.

[Traveler2586]

OK, search as I might I could not find a "law" stating anglers "must" kill snakeheads, just repeated statements that tell you how to kill them and Maryland doesn't want them in their waters.

 

Dissatisfied with my searches I sent a email to Maryland DNR asking for information with the understanding that their answer would be posted here.

 

Please note: the term "possess" (on the water) is defined as having the fish within the gunnels (sides) of the boat.

 

Here is the DNR response.

 

START QUOTE

"Hello - - - -,

 

There is a web of state and federal regulations on snakeheads. I hope that my explanation will be more clarifying than it will be confusing.

 

The federal regulations are found at 50 CFR 16.13 - you may not import, transport, or acquire live snakeheads. I won't speculate on how the feds use those words, as they may well be different from how we use those words.

 

In Maryland, the restrictions are found at COMAR 08.02.19.06. Specifically, see sections C and D:

C. Except as provided in §D of this regulation, a person may not possess the viable eggs or live snakehead fish of the species:

(1) Blotched snakehead (Channa maculata); and

(2) Northern snakehead (Channa argus).

D. The Department may issue a permit for the possession of a live snakehead fish for scientific purposes to a properly accredited person of known scientific attainment.

So an individual MAY NOT possess a live snakehead if they do not have a permit issued to them by the Department. There is NOT a requirement that a snakehead be killed upon capture, but the only two options someone has are to 1) return the fish immediately to the water or 2) kill it. There are no other options.

 

In addition to any federal laws which someone may be in violation of (as we do not work for USFWS I would decline to interpret the federal regulations or speculate on what the possible penalty would be), someone in possession of a live snakehead would be subject to a minimum fine in Maryland of: $750 for 1-3 fish, $1,000 for 4-10 fish, and would be required to appear in court for 11 or more fish. The maximum fine in Maryland for any snakehead violation, regardless of the number of fish is $25,000."  END QUOTE

 

Hope this helps.

[dave]

That is exactly how we understand it.   We kill and eat or,  snap a picture and release.  Our summer schedule is booked solid from June until the end of August with people wanting to catch a snakehead.   They either want just to catch one (or more) for sport or they want to eat it.

[CaptMikeStarrett]

Following up Capt Dave's last post 2016 is looking good with a greater appreciation of this fine game fish and with a lot of catch and release. 2015 saw a much better catch rate that 2014 and from the huge clouds of fry we have seen in 2015 and the numbers of smaller "AKA Potomac Pike" in 2015 the year 2016 looks to be even better. The number of spot light boats has dwindled since the black market for the meat has dried up and Restaurants are refusing to buy the fish back door any more. This has many positive effects as the pads and grasses are not mowed down every night.

Also LGMouth have adapted to the new food source "baby snakeheads" and the ones caught over the last year are fat and full. 

We have many evenings open and would be glad to show you all our tricks and will work hard to get that bite for you. We will be booked up by March however. Both boats..

This Potomac Pike is our target fish on summer evenings. June-July and August. In Sept we chase another fish people love or hate..A real THUG of a fish.

 

Capt Mike

[Blixx]

 

This is the kind of areas I look for when fishing for Snakesheads.  One thing I would like to add is I have moved to a heavy braded line and steel leaders.  I also switched to a stiff pole as it can be difficult to set the hook through the head bone.

I caught this one on memorial day weekend with a  Blue and pink zoom bait worm.  It was the only thing they were hitting on all weekend.

14lbs 46” Northern Snakehead.  I would like to add Snakehead is the best freshwater fish I have ever eaten.

I would like to hear more on successful bait types and dates used.

[DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only]

Typically they can be caught on any bait that a Bass will hit.  But the most common ones I have had luck with is Chatterbaits or rattletraps in the day, top water in the morning and night, and slack tides sinko's /flukes.  If you have one that surfaces in the same spot over and over, a jig or shaky heads can be effective.

[biscaynenative]

Hi all,

I realize this thread is quite old, but I wanted to post nonetheless to see if anyone has noticed any changes in the Potomac snakehead fishery since 2014.  I fish from shore, and have noticed that 2016 has been a much better year for snakeheads than prior years, at least for me. 

I used to catch these fish pretty consistently while working in China (their native range), but found their Potomac cousins to be a bit more tricky.  Recently, however, I've been hooking up on 2-4 fish per day, much more than in the past (and by "day" I mean the few hours I can sneak out to fish, not a full day on the water).  Granted, this is partly due to refining my tactics for Potomac snakeheads (in the area of Fujian Province where I fished, blue/white spinner baits with silver double willow blades were hard to beat, but not so much back stateside), but I'm also wondering if the population hasn't stabilized, but is instead continuing to grow.  This year I've pulled multiple fish out of basically the same location on consecutive casts on a few occasions, but hadn't previously hadn't had that happen. For instance, the two fish in the photos (one 10.5lbs, one 6lbs) came off of the same piece of structure, one right after the other.

Any thoughts/ comments are much appreciated.

[soflabasser]

Nice snakeheads

[biscaynenative]

Blixx,

Have you noticed a decrease in strikes due to steel leaders?  I started fishing for snakeheads with essentially a bonefish setup, 10lb braid, and a 10lb fluoro leader, and it worked just fine.  I then switched over to 20lb braid and 30lb leaders (my snook setup), mostly to not lose lures while overseas, which were painfully hard to replace.  Now that I'm back in the States and can easily replace lures via the internet, I've gone back to a 16lb fluoro leader, and 10lb braid.  I haven't really been cut off by snakeheads so much as lost fish due to them getting behind structure. 

I'm using a St. Croix Avid medium-light fast action rod and a Stradic 2500 as my dedicated snakehead rod.  I find it has more than enough muscle to pull fish out of cover, as they don't make screaming runs like an equivalent-sized mangrove dweller would.  The rod is quite stiff for its size, and isn't noodly like some of the other St. Croix rods I use, even though the other rods are rated as being stronger. 

I agree with the comment on the fish's jaw/ head bones, but to get around that I just make sure my hooks are razor sharp, and I switch them out every few fish.  By and large, I've found that  a good hook (e.g. Gamakatsu) almost always sets itself, as snakehead strikes are pretty violent, especially combined with their tendency to make an almost immediate sideways thrashing motion after the strike.  

As for baits, I mostly target snakeheads with wake baits and shallow-running crank baits. 

Edited September 15, 2016 by biscaynenative
Wanted to add additional info.

[Blixx]

So far I have found that waning high tide and mornings seem to be the best.  Tides and time of day seems to be largest governing factor.  As far as line and leaders… 30lb green braid without any leaders if I am casting into heavy vegetation or debris.  I use this setup with a float and live bait for casting into small opening in heavy vegetation.  I turn off the drag and power them into the boat, I try not to let them run.  For my cast rod running lures, I am using a 10lb mono with a black 6 inch 20lb steel leader.  For shore casting I would move to a 15lb green braid without a leader.  The heaver braid just does not cast very well with light weight lures and mono just does not have the strength to pull the fish out of the weeds.  If you move to a heavy mono you lose the benefits of the light weight lines for long distant casting.  On lures I have had no luck on frogs. I have a dozen different types of frogs and have had no luck with anyone them.  My best lure so far is a shiny purple worm. Live baits- bass minnows or small blue gill.  Hope this helps and would like to hear more feedback on best practices for snakeheads.  Please share what you find successful…

 

 

 

[DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only]

On ‎10‎/‎3‎/‎2016 at 1:55 PM, Blixx said:

So far I have found that waning high tide and mornings seem to be the best.  Tides and time of day seems to be largest governing factor.  As far as line and leaders… 30lb green braid without any leaders if I am casting into heavy vegetation or debris.  I use this setup with a float and live bait for casting into small opening in heavy vegetation.  I turn off the drag and power them into the boat, I try not to let them run.  For my cast rod running lures, I am using a 10lb mono with a black 6 inch 20lb steel leader.  For shore casting I would move to a 15lb green braid without a leader.  The heaver braid just does not cast very well with light weight lures and mono just does not have the strength to pull the fish out of the weeds.  If you move to a heavy mono you lose the benefits of the light weight lines for long distant casting.  On lures I have had no luck on frogs. I have a dozen different types of frogs and have had no luck with anyone them.  My best lure so far is a shiny purple worm. Live baits- bass minnows or small blue gill.  Hope this helps and would like to hear more feedback on best practices for snakeheads.  Please share what you find successful…

 

 

 

I have had tremendous luck with chatterbaits just make sure to cast past where you think they are and not land to close to them as they will often spook when something splashes near them.  Also Flukes and Senko's work great to when a stealthier or weedless presentation is required. Frogs work great when they are in very deep cover like pads or grasses. Poppers fished with quick pauses is probably the most exciting when you cant see them. My favorite is the chatterbait when I can see them though.  The snakehead will cover a lot of water in a hurry to get at one.  There is nothing like watching one take off like a missile after your bait. That's my two cents tight lines.