Flathead or Channel?

[tjm]

 

12 minutes ago, MOfish447 said:

What is this one? 

Small?

Fork tail plus spots plus white belly,  I call it a channel cat, but my cat fish experience is rather limited. For whatever reason I've never caught any cats except bullhead on my flies.

[BilletHead]

29 minutes ago, MOfish447 said:

Not sure. What is this one? 

          Channel again.

[FishnDave]

I'd posted elsewhere about this one particular channel catfish that had a ginormous head.  I just found another picture of it from a different angle.  Check that out! 

[Ham]

2 hours ago, MOfish447 said:

Not sure. What is this one? 

Larger than mine and still a channel cat

[Al Agnew]

Forked tail equals channel or blue catfish.  Doesn't matter whether they are little or big.  Little catfish with forked tail and black spots--channel catfish every time.  Square or rounded tail can be flathead, bullhead (yellow or black), or if small, could be a madtom of one species or another.  Flathead should be pretty unmistakable, however.  Big, wide, flat head and wide mouth, splotchy brown and yellow coloration, big adipose fin (the fleshy fin on the back near the tail).  Little flatheads look pretty much like big ones.  Bullheads are never splotchy, and have a short, round head.  Little bullheads are black (even yellow bullheads).  Madtoms never get more than about 4 inches, on most species the adipose fin connects with the tail fin, they are brownish and yellowish but most have dark bands across their backs.

[FishnDave]

I think brown bullheads are often splotchy.

(picture from online)

Even some black bullheads are sort of splotchy to a lesser degree:

[MOPanfisher]

Most little flathead I have seen were very splotchy but the head shape was unmistakable.  Litthe channels (fiddlers or croakers) arw the finger and hand stabbing-est critters that swim.  Used to help raise them and they can fold their pectoral fins back to get ya with the serrations on them.  Bigger channels can't move theirs.  Used to laugh at the idea if rubbing a cut spot on their bellies, our hands would get so sore and swollen from getting the little turds out of nets we could hardly make a fist.  Then out of desperation I started rubbing every new cut on their slimy bellies, and by golly it did work.  Them old timers knew a thing or two.

I can't remember the last time I caught a bullhead.  We would catch them.occasionally while crappie fishing, and kept them to stock a tiny little pond with, dad would feed them floating catfish food every day, and if he ever wanted to eat fresh fish it took longer to clean them than catch a mess.

[Ham]

On 3/3/2021 at 2:29 PM, Flysmallie said:

 

Once you have the flathead in hand you will definitely know.

THIS ! Once you catch a flathead, I don't understand how you could be confused later. 

[bfishn]

1 hour ago, Ham said:

THIS ! Once you catch a flathead, I don't understand how you could be confused later. 

Absolutely. 

The deal with "big heads" on catfish isn't about big heads, it's about small bodies. Laugh away guys, but a fish that, for any number of reasons, can't eat, can't digest, or can't process food in a normal way will waste away, leaving little but a big head. 

[Ham]