Flathead Catfish Information
1 - 18 of 18 Posts
Both fish can exceed 100 lbs.
This is true about flatheads not living well in ponds, but it has been done.
If i were to have a pond of flats i would make sure the pond exceeded 12ft.
Atleast 3-4 acres. And an Aeriator or fountain. Big fish must have good oxygen levels. This is whats wrong with having those monster's contained in a small impoundment.
There is a fishing place about 20 mins away were i live and he is pretty successful in harvesting flatheads. He does have a few die here and there but for the most part they do well in his ponds.
any more question ask>? Or if u need me to clarify anything let me know !
Catch one monster and you'll be hooked !!!!
This is true about flatheads not living well in ponds, but it has been done.
If i were to have a pond of flats i would make sure the pond exceeded 12ft.
Atleast 3-4 acres. And an Aeriator or fountain. Big fish must have good oxygen levels. This is whats wrong with having those monster's contained in a small impoundment.
There is a fishing place about 20 mins away were i live and he is pretty successful in harvesting flatheads. He does have a few die here and there but for the most part they do well in his ponds.
any more question ask>? Or if u need me to clarify anything let me know !
Catch one monster and you'll be hooked !!!!
Joined
·
2,432 Posts
Yah, If you put a flathead in a pond, it will eat everything! 
If there are bass in there it will take them down too. Blues get a lot bigger than flatheads usually. Atleast in Indiana they do. I think, but don't hold me to it, that flatheads life span is about twenty years. I am not sure about blues. Good Luck!!
If there are bass in there it will take them down too. Blues get a lot bigger than flatheads usually. Atleast in Indiana they do. I think, but don't hold me to it, that flatheads life span is about twenty years. I am not sure about blues. Good Luck!! 
Joined
·
9,811 Posts
yep there correct. flatheads in a pond will break ya stocking bluegills. they are not reccomended in ponds at all. if ya want a successful balance in species.
they and blues are very close in size. the current world record flathead is 123#in 1989 in kansas and new world record blue came this summer from illinois mississippi river at 124#.
if your not fimilliar with them they can be positivly identified by the tail. a channel has deep fork with pointed tips while the blue has shallow fork with rounded tips and a squared anal fin (channels are rounded and have less rays) and a flatheads tail is flat. no fork. the fork is speed while the flat is for power and thrust.
they and blues are very close in size. the current world record flathead is 123#in 1989 in kansas and new world record blue came this summer from illinois mississippi river at 124#.
if your not fimilliar with them they can be positivly identified by the tail. a channel has deep fork with pointed tips while the blue has shallow fork with rounded tips and a squared anal fin (channels are rounded and have less rays) and a flatheads tail is flat. no fork. the fork is speed while the flat is for power and thrust.
Joined
·
207 Posts
The bigger the body of water you fish the bigger the fish,Blues and flatties can get about the same size most of the time.But i have seen in books of blues that were caught befor the civil war being 300+ pounds.Bue i would recomend useing live bait for flatties find log jams with deep holes around them during the day.LIve blue gills and live eels, our state record was caught a couple sundays ago here in NC off of live eel it was 78 pounds and 52 inches long in the same river i do all my fishing in.Also flatties will move to shallower water at night to feed on bait fish. I would find out what fish are in the waters you are fishing and any of those can be used to catch faltties even small catfish.
Joined
·
207 Posts
Me too brother, i have also read that there are starting to be more situations where people are starting to come across 100+ pound fish so they say that if it keeps going the way its going with CPR and all that in play there should be fish out there getting up to that said.Im not sayin that its all true just stuff i have been reading in catfish books (so nobody try and jump down my throat for something i might have said)....lol
Joined
·
207 Posts
yup very true, Our NC flattie record that was caught was kept alive for 11 hours then released after it was confirmed a record.And it was caught were i do ALL my fishing so it give s me the chance to catch it or it to get way bigger and maybe break my pole.....lol
Joined
·
1,505 Posts
Before you cpr the fish make sure that it has recovered from the fight before you do so. If it was caught deep...it may need to be burped. They experience the same thing as a diver does if he comes up too quickly...the bends....a build up of nitrogen gas. I use a pvc pipe that I stick down the fishs throat and then press gently on the side of the fish. You'll hear a whoosh of air and after that it's done. Hold onto the fish and work it back and forth before you release it....allowing it to replenish some of the oxygen the fish expended during the fight. It does no good to release a fish if it is going to die after you do so. Sometimes no matter how much you try to revive a fish, some fish will die anyhow due to the buildup of amino acids during the fight. How deeply a fish is hooked also is a factor in its survival. Cicle hooks alleviate some instances of deep hooking...but not always. There's some fish that are gill hooked that will die no matter how good your intentions. Such fish should be kept even if it's against your beliefs. It's better not to waste the fish. Even with the big boys...if cleaned properly...they taste just as good as the pan sized ones.
Joined
·
10,863 Posts
Catcaller - I agree 100% that there is no sense in releasing a fish if it has no chance of surviving. I have never heard of the "burping process"! How big of a piece of PVC pipe do you use and from how deep of water does the fish have to come from in order to use this procedure. I release almost all Cat's I catch so I'm very interested in your technique!
Joined
·
1,505 Posts
Penncatchaser... It doesnt really matter how big the pipe is as long as it will fit down its throat...obviously the smaller the better. Just be gentle when you stick it down its gullet as to not damage the fish. If when you pull out the pipe some of its throat comes up with it...gently shove it back down where it came from. Some people also use a syringe that they poke into the fishs air bladder from the outside and remove the gas that way. I feel that damages the fish and leaves it suseptible to infection. Fish caught 30' and deeper need to be burped before release. There are lots of articles out there in the magazines about this...I saw one in one of last falls Field and Stream issues...cant remember which one...In Fisherman had an article here awhile back also. Perhaps if you check either one of the magazines website there'd be a search engine there that could help you find what you need.
1 - 18 of 18 Posts
