Stormy Flatheads

[Jason Essary]

Flatheads must not mind the stormy nights. caught 5 last nice, largest 12 smallest 4. all caught on live green sunfish and a couple pumpkin seed perch (shorter than 5"...lol). anyways, where are the channel cats and blues??? Ive bout stopped using shad alltogether. havent caught one most all week.

Windy conditons make running lines a huge headache. bout had two hooks get into the meat of my hand while i was trying to position boat with trolling motor and hang on to the line at the same time. Lucky i guess that i didnt join u guys that have had hooks buried in the wrong kind of meat.

[Trav]

Where were you fishing?

[Jason Essary]

Little North Indian, Nw of indian point. If someone wanted to catch some on pole and line it d be a good time. most are coming on hooks in 15 to 25 feet, just outside the tree line. Just rebaited tonight and had a nice 18" kent that swallowed a perch today. Let him go, he was really tired but think he will be fine.

[Trav]

My Gram's Cousin(my third cousin?), in the 80s owned a dock off Joe Bald(before he passed on) and he ran trots with great skill. He used green sunfish(or other perch he can catch) and stuck the heads of all the catfish on the fenceposts near his dock.(Some might remember him). He always said that windy(white cap) nights were the best times.

[Kayser]

I remember seeing a restriction on bluegill for bait (shorter than 5") in last years, but it never said anything about other sunfish (green sunnies, longears, pumkinseed). Looked through this years regs booklet and the only restriction I could find is any bluegill or green sunfish over 5" not caught on pole and line must be released immediately. Can anyone point out the page on with the maximum bait bluegill size for me?

Rob

[Trav]

Page 77, stipulation 4 in the Wildlife Code book.

Here is a link to it online. Read Chapter 6.

http://www.sos.mo.gov/adrules/csr/current/3csr/3csr.asp

[zander]

My interpretation of the regulation is that if the sunfish or bullhead is greater than 5 inches AND it was caught with a net or trap the it must be released. But if you catch it on a pole you would be fine using it for bait. I doubt that the agents would inspect the fish lips for a hook hole but I am sure there was some reason for writing it into law into the first place.

[Trav]

I understand it as only bluegills, sunfish, or bullhead under 5 inches may be used as bait no matter the method they were taken. Code States;

(4) Length Limits: All bluegill, green sunfish

and bullheads more than five inches (5") in

total length and other fish more than twelve

inches (12") in total length must be returned

to the water immediately after being caught

by the methods prescribed in this rule, except

there are no length limits for bighead carp,

common carp, gizzard shad, goldfish, grass

carp and silver carp.

(2) Methods.

(A) Live bait may be taken by a trap with

throat opening not to exceed one and one-half

inches (1 1/2") in any dimension, dip net,

throw net, pole and line, or a seine not more

than twenty feet (20') long and four feet (4')deep, of a mesh not more than one-half inch

(1/2") bar measure.

( Live bait, except fish, may be taken by

hand.

© Crayfish may also be taken by trap

with an opening not to exceed one and onehalf

inches (1 1/2") by eighteen inches (18").

[zander]

well it is a good thing I'm not a lawyer, someone could have gotten the chair. Thanks for the clarification Trav.

[Trav]

I had to read it twice myself!