Bowfin eat frogs too.

[ErieCan]

It hasn't been a great season up here so far. We've had very unstable weather for weeks.  I was out at sunrise and immediately started working a frog in a back bay. Several pike launched themselves clear out of the water at the frog. Most miss but I landed a couple. Bass were not committing to the frog. I'd follow up the boils with a weightless caffeine shad and landed four. The surprise of the morning was this bowfin. Followed the frog from behind like Jaws before taking it. We don't see too many of these here so it's a bit of exotic catch. 

 

[gim]

My old man piled into one boat side a couple days ago. We have been fishing this lake off and on for almost 15 years and never caught one. His spinnerbait is completely mangled.

[gim]

3 hours ago, ErieCan said:

Most miss but I landed a couple.

My frogs get ruined when pike hit them. They get torn and ripped in the side and then they take on water and sink. I have to imagine a bowfin would also rip a hollow body frog too.

[MIbassyaker]

I catch a few of these guys every year.  Just like pike, they'll eat anything, but they seem to love topwaters and flashy/noisy lures.

[soflabasser]

Bowfin are one of the most underrated freshwater fish there is. They give a good fight, hit the same lures a bass does, and are eager biters. They break lures easier than bass do but that is ok since they are fun to catch. 

[ErieCan]

1 hour ago, gimruis said:

My frogs get ruined when pike hit them. They get torn and ripped in the side and then they take on water and sink. I have to imagine a bowfin would also rip a hollow body frog too.

 

The pike were blind or something today. One pike came flying out of the water, sent the frog flying the other way. I like catching big pike here in the spring, but these small buggers are a bane when it comes to bass fishing.  

[Bluebasser86]

3 hours ago, soflabasser said:

Bowfin are one of the most underrated freshwater fish there is. They give a good fight, hit the same lures a bass does, and are eager biters. They break lures easier than bass do but that is ok since they are fun to catch. 

I'd trade all the drum in our lakes for bowfin. I've only ever caught 2, both in the Everglades flipping a Pitboss into vegetation. Great battles both times, minus the gator charging the second one and making things dicey for a second, it was a blast. I could see where they'd be really disappointing if I was in a tournament, but I was fun fishing and catching them was a heck of a lot of fun. 

[Biglittle8]

This guy bit a Texas rigged Zoom worm.

[Captain Phil]

Bowfin, or Mudfish as we call them, are great fun.  Florida is full of them.  I've caught some giants.  You normally catch them in shallow water.  They are not as sensitive to oxygen levels as bass and will live in very shallow areas in the heat of summer.  They are murder on spinnerbaits and will crush a balsa crankbait.  They love weightless worms.  One of the best lakes in Florida for Bowfin is Blue Cypress Lake near Vero.   When the water is low in the Everglades, you need a stainless prop.  There are so many gars and mudfish in the canals that they will destroy an aluminum prop just by running.  Sounds like a story I know, but it's true.

[desmobob]

There are plenty of them in Lake Champlain here in the Northeast...

 

[gim]

1 hour ago, Captain Phil said:

They are not as sensitive to oxygen levels as bass and will live in very shallow areas in the heat of summer.

They can actually live in water without ANY dissolved oxygen because their swim bladder is also used as an atmospheric lung which means they can come up to the surface and take a gulp of air like a mammal.

[Captain Phil]

The Florida Bowfin record is 19 pounds.  It's not unusual to catch one over ten.  Never lip a Bowfin.  Ask me how I know.  ?

[MN Fisher]

23 minutes ago, Captain Phil said:

Never lip a Bowfin.  Ask me how I know.  ?

Well, considering one of it's closest relatives is the Gar - it's kind of a 'DUH!' thing.

[scaleface]

That had to be fun catching one on a frog . I havent caught one for a few years but they are a blast .

[soflabasser]

4 hours ago, Captain Phil said:

The Florida Bowfin record is 19 pounds.  It's not unusual to catch one over ten.  Never lip a Bowfin.  Ask me how I know.  ?

I caught a bowfin that was well over 12 pounds in the Everglades and know there are bigger ones in there. The big ones are masters at shaking off the hook. Average size seems to be around 2-5 pounds with a big one over 8 pounds. Bowfin have a powerful mouth full of sharp teeth so I prefer using a lip gripper or landing net to land them.

7 hours ago, Captain Phil said:

Bowfin, or Mudfish as we call them, are great fun.  Florida is full of them.  I've caught some giants.  You normally catch them in shallow water.  They are not as sensitive to oxygen levels as bass and will live in very shallow areas in the heat of summer.  They are murder on spinnerbaits and will crush a balsa crankbait.  They love weightless worms.  One of the best lakes in Florida for Bowfin is Blue Cypress Lake near Vero.   When the water is low in the Everglades, you need a stainless prop.  There are so many gars and mudfish in the canals that they will destroy an aluminum prop just by running.  Sounds like a story I know, but it's true.

Bowfin are very tough fish that thrive in less than ideal conditions. They bite well even on +95 degree heat days with low water. They do love soft plastic worms and any slow moving soft plastic but will hit a fast moving jerk bait just like a bass does. It is true that the Everglades has a thriving population of gar and bowfin which shows how healthy the Everglades is to be able to support all these fish.

[soflabasser]

13 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I'd trade all the drum in our lakes for bowfin. I've only ever caught 2, both in the Everglades flipping a Pitboss into vegetation. Great battles both times, minus the gator charging the second one and making things dicey for a second, it was a blast. I could see where they'd be really disappointing if I was in a tournament, but I was fun fishing and catching them was a heck of a lot of fun. 

I agree bowfin are much more fun to catch than freshwater drum. When you get a chance you should fish the Everglades when the water level is low. It is common to catch +100 fish a day all on artificial lures during these times. I only fish to have fun but understand why a tournament bass fisherman might not be so happy when a big bowfin bites. I only fish for fun so catching several bowfin as bycatch while bass fishing is ok with me.

[ErieCan]

1 hour ago, soflabasser said:

I agree bowfin are much more fun to catch than freshwater drum. When you get a chance you should fish the Everglades when the water level is low. It is common to catch +100 fish a day all on artificial lures during these times. I only fish to have fun but understand why a tournament bass fisherman might not be so happy when a big bowfin bites. I only fish for fun so catching several bowfin as bycatch while bass fishing is ok with me.

 

I fish lake Erie and it's bays. That's where I caught this bowfin.  4' of water in a bay choked with a mix of grass, pads, and reeds.  Typically there are more largemouth in here but the strange weather has seemed to cause a lot of the Largemouth to roam into the deeper areas chasing shiners.  Pike have become a bigger annoyance than usual in the shallows this season.  

 

We get big drum (sheep heads) in the open water around the shoals where we fish for smallmouth. They'll destroy your drop shots and ned rigs.  They'll also make an absolute mess of your lines when walleye trolling.  I think the more targeted and experienced an angler gets, the more they devalue certain fish. 

[soflabasser]

27 minutes ago, ErieCan said:

I think the more targeted and experienced an angler gets, the more they devalue certain fish. 

 

Some people think this way but not everyone. There are several talented bass fishermen in this forum that enjoy catching bowfin and other species of fish. 

27 minutes ago, ErieCan said:

 

I fish lake Erie and it's bays. That's where I caught this bowfin.  4' of water in a bay choked with a mix of grass, pads, and reeds.  Typically there are more largemouth in here but the strange weather has seemed to cause a lot of the Largemouth to roam into the deeper areas chasing shiners.  Pike have become a bigger annoyance than usual in the shallows this season.  

 

We get big drum (sheep heads) in the open water around the shoals where we fish for smallmouth. They'll destroy your drop shots and ned rigs.  They'll also make an absolute mess of your lines when walleye trolling.  

Bowfin usually live in areas with calm water but can be caught in areas with current such as rivers and spillways. Fish move around so it is not surprising you caught bowfin in a place you usually catch bass.

[TnRiver46]

19 hours ago, soflabasser said:

Bowfin are one of the most underrated freshwater fish there is. They give a good fight, hit the same lures a bass does, and are eager biters. They break lures easier than bass do but that is ok since they are fun to catch. 

Not fun at all once you’ve caught them is the problem. Well that and the horrible flavor 

 

frog is the most common bowfin catching lure we use down south. Well that or plastic worm 

[NoShoes]

12 hours ago, Captain Phil said:

Bowfin, or Mudfish as we call them, are great fun.  Florida is full of them.  I've caught some giants.  You normally catch them in shallow water.  They are not as sensitive to oxygen levels as bass and will live in very shallow areas in the heat of summer.  They are murder on spinnerbaits and will crush a balsa crankbait.  They love weightless worms.  One of the best lakes in Florida for Bowfin is Blue Cypress Lake near Vero.   When the water is low in the Everglades, you need a stainless prop.  There are so many gars and mudfish in the canals that they will destroy an aluminum prop just by running.  Sounds like a story I know, but it's true.

Like the fish bite the prop or is the prop biting them?

[gim]

4 hours ago, ErieCan said:

Pike have become a bigger annoyance than usual in the shallows this season.  

We have those here too. Way too many in fact. I normally catch more of them when the water isn’t so hot which is spring and fall. Midsummer I usually catch enough too but this season I haven’t caught hardly any of them. I think it’s too warm even for the annoying hammer handle pike. I’m sure once the water cools in September they’ll be on the rampage again.

[Captain Phil]

11 hours ago, NoShoes said:

Like the fish bite the prop or is the prop biting them?

 

If the water level in the Everglades drops to a certain point, all the fish that live on the flats are driven into the drainage canals.  This puts millions of fish from miles around into a ditch 50-100 feet wide and some miles long.  Gars and mudfish have tough skin.  Some are quite large. When an aluminum prop hits these fish, it can bend the prop.   For this reason, it's advisable to run a stainless prop in the Glades.  This low water situation is normally at it's peak in the spring. In June, the afternoon rains begin and the water rises.  There is a tiny window of time when only bigger fish are still trapped in the canals.  Fish trapped in the canals are hungry and will bite just about anything you throw at them. 

 

Bass fishing during low water in the Glades is insane.  It's nothing to catch 50-100 fish a day. Most are small, but every now and then you can catch a giant.  Fishing with large plastic worms is the best way to avoid the dinks. As soon as the water rises and the main body of fish can get back into the flats, fishing gets tough.  You can still catch fish if you fish where there is current.  This cycle has been going on ever since the Everglades was dredged to drain the swamp about 100 years ago. 

 

Fishing the Everglades and Okeechobee is deceiving.  It makes you believe you are a better angler than you are.  Catching fish in a bucket is easier than catching fish in a 50,000 acre lake with no visible cover. 

[Jigfishn10]

I've never gotten into one, but they look fun to catch!

[scaleface]

The last one I caught was on a Rattle Trap while fishing for smallmouth in a river . That one surprised me because usually I catch them in shallow back water areas .

[desmobob]

40 minutes ago, Jigfishn10 said:

I've never gotten into one, but they look fun to catch!

 

They are practically a dinosaur as far as evolution goes, and they fight like one.  Very strong.  Tough to handle in the boat... they (and big northerns) were my motivation to trade in my plastic fish-grippers for a real BogaGrip.