Monster flatheadss!!!(8/22/16)

[Dave B.]

[QUOTE=Originally Posted by Eskimo-This is in NJ and not PA, right? /]

Originally Posted by bigboy5522

Yup

Nice job on those big boys. You do realize you are required by law to kill those fish? It is illegal to release flatheads in NJ.

[Esox Luciano]

Nice!! Between you guys and JD & Cris, I dunno who to call the dynamic duo!? Awesome catches guys, some more trophy class fish indeed!!!

[JDTuna]

Originally Posted by Dave B.

Nice job on those big boys. You do realize you are required by law to kill those fish? It is illegal to release flatheads in NJ.

Technically that might be true but it is a pointless law that will not put a dent in the population. Those flatheads are in there for good. I doubt flatheads have any effect given the cohabitate countless water bodies throughout their native range with the species that are found in the Delaware (many of which are also not native). It's wasteful to just kill them.

[Eskimo]

.

Originally Posted by Dave B.

Nice job on those big boys. You do realize you are required by law to kill those fish? It is illegal to release flatheads in NJ.

I believe this was a justifiable act of civil disobedience.

Japan has a similar law requiring all Largemouth Bass to be immediately killed. But Japanese anglers have grown quite fond of bass fishing and in an act of defiance rare in Japanese culture - they release their bass. Catch-and-release has been so successful in Japan that in 2009 a bass was caught there that tied for the world record.


.

[QUOTE=Dave B.;458898]

Originally Posted by Originally Posted by Eskimo-This is in NJ and not PA, right? /

Nice job on those big boys. You do realize you are required by law to kill those fish? It is illegal to release flatheads in NJ.

As mentioned in an earlier thread, NJ has it's head in the sand when it comes to flat head catfish. They're not only not going away, they're numbers are increasing exponentially. The following is a excerpt on egg production for flatheads:

Males select hollow logs, caves or areas beneath the banks for their nest sites. Males may even improve their selected sites by creating shallow depressions for the females to lay their eggs. Egg number varies greatly depending on female size, but the average is up to 100,000 eggs at a time. Scientists estimate that a female will lay 1200 eggs for every pound she weighs. A female flathead that weights 50 pounds might release 60,000 eggs at a time. After an incubation period of four to six days, the fry (very young fish) will school together at the nest for several days after hatching; afterwards they will seek shelter beneath rocks, roots and other cover and begin their independent lives. Average lifespan of the flathead catfish is 12 to 14 years, but one recorded flathead catfish lived 24 years.

Retaining a few of these fish which are targeted only by a very small fraternity of anglers won't change a thing and it's mindless thinking. Anyone who fishes for these fish realize how great a fishery this is and the trophy size these fish can attain is limited only by the size of the systems they live in. NJ will come around eventually, they'll have no choice. As I said in an earlier post, hope isn't a strategy and hoping flat heads go away isn't reality. The balance of habitat and food supply which exists in the Delaware and any other system you find these fish in will ultimately decide their fate and not draconian regulations made by a group of bureaucrats who have an ulterior agenda.

Congratulations again to NJFlyfisher and BB on their great catch! To answer the questions someone else asked about big fish caught, I heard of a fish caught believe it was last year around Belvidere in the 40 plus range. There's bigger fish in the river, no doubt about it.

[JDTuna]

Big flatheads!!! Nice work guys!!