Not the target ?

[Trox]

More often than not, I'll catch at least one off-target species in an outing. Fishing mostly central and south Texas lakes, my most recent off-target catches by species are: 

 

- large crappie while drop shotting a mid-depth brush pile

- white bass on a jerkbait

- drum (2x) on a red chatterbait (last outing)

- 30lb catfish on medium diving crankbait (couple of months ago)

- gar on a small underspin

 

I've also been known to catch a zebra mussel or two  

[papajoe222]

I don't know what it is with me and catfish, but they seem to like whatever I'm throwing, even topwater. Back in '89 I, along with my non-boater and those in another boat, thought I had big fish of the tourney when one hammered my spinnerbait and bent my rod in half.  Laughed over that story for years.

Muskie,  big crappie and dogfish are about the only others I occasionally hook.

 

[N Florida Mike]

1 hour ago, TnRiver46 said:

You got pickerel and mud fish too 

But they arent nearly as numerous as the others. You almost never catch a pickeral unless it’s in a little creek out in the woods. . Mudfish are in nearly every natural lake and river but not in great amounts except in the muddiest, shallowest water bodies… We do  have a lot of gars ,  and a relatively small population of stripers in a few of the rivers.  White bass are more in Nw Florida.There are relatively few tropical fish like south Florida, it’s too cold for them to be very high in numbers. We do have a moderate amount of some kind of tilapia that I can’t catch, lol. I’m sure there’s something I’m forgetting.

[JoeDeal55]

While specifically fishing for LMB, I have caught a huge bluegill on a Zara Puppy, and also a large bluegill on a ned rig with a Zman Ticklerz. Other that that, I havent caught anything other than LMB while fishing for LMB. 

[Hammer 4]

Only 3 times have I caught untargeted fish. Trolling a lipless crank, I hooked a 7 lb rainbow trout. Another time throwing a Rapala minnow, got a slab of a crappie. And lastly, was throwing a 6" Hudd, and stuck a schoolie striper.

One I don't really count is I was dropshotting a 4" roboworm in about 3' of water from shore, I could easily feel that something was nibbling on it, turns out a little 5" bluegill, had all but inhaled the worm, but didn't hooked, as it nose hooked. Reeled it in and pulled the worm out of the little guy, and released to grow up.

Fishing for bass in the salt is way different story..lol

[scaleface]

I catch  a lot of channel cats . 

[Kirtley Howe]

Common By catches....Walleye, Musky, Tiger Musky, Pike, Rock Bass, Sunfish and Bluegill, occasional Crappie, Creek Chubs (up to 14"), Carp, Bullhead, Catfish, Horn Dace (ever heard of them?), Bowfin, very seldom a Sheepshead. 

[ironbjorn]

By frequency, it would be:

 

1. Crappie (Ned Rig and Jerkbait usually)

2. Drum (Ned Rig)

3. Catfish (Can be anything)

[PhishLI]

Plenty of big Pickerel around here and the occasional swimbait eating Crappie or Bluegill. They have a thing for the Shellcracker G2

 

 

 

[Catt]

Alligator, Choupique (bowfin), Alligator Gar, Redfish, Crappie, Goggle-eye (rock bass), Warmouth, Hybred Striped Bass, Syriped Bass, Blue Catfish, Flathead Catfish, Channel Catfish. Plus all your little sunfish 

[crypt]

caught snook, redfish,trout when fishing up the Sebastian river. the c-54 canal dumps right into it.great place to catch anything.also tarpon, not big ones but they are fun to hookup.

[Bankbeater]

A lot of it depends on where I am fishing, but I catch catfish, muskie, crappie, and sunfish.  I think warmouth led the list this past fishing season.

[Alex from GA]

When I'm in GA I'll catch lots of others, crappie, bluegill, catfish, walleye, perch, rock bass, gar.  A jigging spoon will catch everything.  Caught my largest striper with 6 lb line and a worm, 24-12.  In FL the most bycatch are bowfin/mudfish on spinnerbaits with some pickerel.   

[detroit1]

I usually catch 1 pike every trip out. No big ones this year, (29"), but i did catch more rock bass this year than i have for years, on spinnerbaits and bladed jigs. My last trip this year, i caught a 5" perch on a 1/2oz. blade bait. I suck in water colder than 52 degrees...

[Munkin]

Depending on where you are fishing in Maryland you'll catch all types of fish on bass lures. The only time I am surprised is trout on jerkbaits. My coangler in a club tournament caught a 16" brook trout on a xrap in June.

 

Allen 

[Fishin Dad]

The pike around here for the last couple years have been CRAZY.  It is not uncommon to catch more pike than bass on a certain lake.  I lost A LOT of baits to those slimeballs.  Last season I also caught, crappie, sunfish, walleye, sauger, bullhead, catfish, drum, rock bass, and mudfish.  No musky.  I don't mind the non-toothy critters.  They don't wreck my stuff and tear my hands up.  

[gim]

28 minutes ago, Fishin Dad said:

The pike around here for the last couple years have been CRAZY.  It is not uncommon to catch more pike than bass on a certain lake.  I lost A LOT of baits to those slimeballs.

Ain’t that the truth. Sometimes my catch rate is 5 to 1 or more with pike to bass. Wish more people would utilize this abundant and easy to catch resource by keeping a bunch of small ones.

 

This past season I didn’t hardly catch any for the entire months of June and July because it was so warm.

[DINK WHISPERER]

Happens all the time to my son and I. Pickerel and bluegill are the most common in central Florida. When we're down South there's no telling what you're going to get! It can be anything from a tiny tilapia to a giant tarpon. 

The 2 in the pictures below both hit a 1/2oz red eye shad with big #2 triple grips. 

[Fat Ika]

Warmouth on a jackhammer. Can't find the pic. Pretty funny

 

Crappie - 4.3 keitech owner beast hook

 

Channel Cat - 2.8 keitech on a ballhead. 

 

The most eventful was a muskie I did not land ,but tried snatching a largie. Bass hit jerkbait......immediately after the bass hit jerkbait, I heard a weird underwater sound and was simultaneously slacked lined. Fought an estimated 40" muskie for a bit. At boat side, muskie saw me and let go of the largie. Here's the carnage. 

[TnRiver46]

1 hour ago, Fat Ika said:

Warmouth on a jackhammer. Can't find the pic. Pretty funny

 

Crappie - 4.3 keitech owner beast hook

 

Channel Cat - 2.8 keitech on a ballhead. 

 

The most eventful was a muskie I did not land ,but tried snatching a largie. Bass hit jerkbait......immediately after the bass hit jerkbait, I heard a weird underwater sound and was simultaneously slacked lined. Fought an estimated 40" muskie for a bit. At boat side, muskie saw me and let go of the largie. Here's the carnage. 

That happened to me once and upon inspection the Muskie chomped so hard the bend on my hook was flattened 

[Aaron_H]

21 hours ago, N Florida Mike said:

We do have a moderate amount of some kind of tilapia that I can’t catch, lol.

 

Blue tilapia, most likely. Just gotta know how to trigger 'em! ? I ended up catching just over 50 of them this year, biggest one was 7lb 2oz. This one here went 8lb 10oz.

[Fishin Dad]

6 hours ago, gimruis said:

Ain’t that the truth. Sometimes my catch rate is 5 to 1 or more with pike to bass. Wish more people would utilize this abundant and easy to catch resource by keeping a bunch of small ones.

 

This past season I didn’t hardly catch any for the entire months of June and July because it was so warm.

I really hate those days.  I usually move pretty quickly when the pike are going nuts.  I think we should head down to Florida, these guys get to catch some wild stuff!!  I could get out of this cold!!!

 

40 minutes ago, Aaron_H said:

 

Blue tilapia, most likely. Just gotta know how to trigger 'em! ? I ended up catching just over 50 of them this year, biggest one was 7lb 2oz. This one here went 8lb 10oz.

 

4 hours ago, DINK WHISPERER said:

Happens all the time to my son and I. Pickerel and bluegill are the most common in central Florida. When we're down South there's no telling what you're going to get! It can be anything from a tiny tilapia to a giant tarpon. 

The 2 in the pictures below both hit a 1/2oz red eye shad with big #2 triple grips. 

 

[N Florida Mike]

44 minutes ago, Aaron_H said:

 

Blue tilapia, most likely. Just gotta know how to trigger 'em! ? I ended up catching just over 50 of them this year, biggest one was 7lb 2oz. This one here went 8lb 10oz.

Yeah , that’s what they look like. I know of a pond that’s full of them, and they wouldn’t bite anything. They were bedding in April. I even tried snagging one and couldn’t even do that , lol.

 

[gim]

4 hours ago, Fat Ika said:

Here's the carnage

Yikes, that is some carnage. Muskies have serious teeth and an iron jaw. Did the bass survive or did it die?

[T-Billy]

Happens on a regular basis. LM in the bottom pic was 19". I found it floating belly up barely alive last spring. Mauled by a musky.