While many factors can lend to fishing success, the odds are a lot better if you are familiar with the best catfishing spots in Southeast Missouri. From the great Mississippi to the littler known Crane Lake, choosing one these prime fishing areas is sure to increase your chances of filling your stringer, or maybe even catching a record breaking catfish!
The Mississippi River
Statistically speaking, the Mississippi River is the best when it comes to catfishing spots in Southeast Missouri. Blue, Channel, and Flathead catfish are found here abundantly, and you will likely be successful in catching all three types.
Try the tips of wing dikes, around snags or along rip rap banks with swift currents, side channels, and near woody debris. If you are lucky, you may even catch a trophy Blue or Flathead Cat weighing over 30 pounds.
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Lake Girardeau
This 162 acre lake is located on Route U, off of Highway 34, in Cape Girardeau County. This massive lake is one of the best catfishing spots in Southeast Missouri in part because it is kept so fully stocked. Over 3,000 Channel Catfish are added each year to Lake Girardeau, at a rate of 25 fish per acre.
Black River The Black River above Clearwater Lake provides an excellent habitat for Channel catfish, which is part of the reason it is one of the best catfishing spots in southeast Missouri. The catfish are usually found in the deep pools along the river and go for either chicken liver of night-crawlers as bait.
There are also some Flathead catfish in the river, and the Missouri Department of Conservation receives several reports annually of Flatheads being caught that weighed in at over 40 pounds.
When you aren't fishing for Catfish, you may want to try your luck with the many Smallmouth and Largemouth Bass that inhabit this river as well.
Cypress
The lakes and parks are attractive to people looking for good vacation spots. The thriving coastal area creates a perfect place to live with a wealth of opportunities along the coastline for shrimp, lobster and deep water fishing. Within the last 20 years, Mississippi has become a great tourism area, especially along the Mississippi coast. There are casinos in Biloxi, Gulfport, Natchez, Vicksburg and all along the Mississippi River from Tunica to Natchez. Many Civil War Battles were fought in Mississippi.
On July 9, 2011, a major fish kill (fish kill I) was observed by the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (OKDEQ) in the Red River, near Ketchum’s Bluff, Oklahoma. The Red River, with headwaters in the Texas panhandle, flows for 917 kilometers, between the borders of Oklahoma (OK) and Texas (TX), before emptying into the Mississippi River. During this fish kill, hundreds of large bottom feeder fish (i.e., catfish and buffalo) were observed as either dead, struggling, or actively dying. Nearly two months later, on September 14, 2011, another fish kill (fish kill II) occurred further south along the Red River, approximately 130 km downstream from Ketchum’s Bluff near Lake Texhoma. Again, it was observed that hundreds of only the large bottom feeder fish were affected by an unknown toxin(s). OKDEQ believed that the two fish kills were related, with the unknown toxicant(s) traveling further downstream from the first fish kill (July 9, 2011), but causing fish mortality 60 days later downstream. The following year, on June 13, 2012, another fish kill (fish kill III) occurred, again near the area of Ketchum’s Bluff and Red Creek confluence. And a final fish kill (fish kill IV) occurred on January 31, 2013, in the same watershed, near Red River and Beaver Creek confluence. Environmental samples (i.e., water, sediment, and fish) were collected, by OKDEQ and the United States Envi...
There are two things that should be considered in bass fishing, which are, the bass location on the lake or river and bass catching using different techniques, presentations and baits.
The range of the Redfin pickerel is found statewide with the exception of mountain habitats. Environment: They are usually found in heavy growths of aquatic plants in sluggish streams. They are also found in shallow coves of lakes or in ponds. They prefer water from 75 to 80 degrees.
Since this first encounter I have caught lots of these magnificent fish and as the years go by they seem to keep getting bigger and bigger. I have developed several baits and presentations that help me to catch these fish and I would like to share them with you.
Peacock bass are the most beautiful fresh water fish that you can find in certain parts of America but they are mostly highly concentrated in South America including; Amazon, Columbia, Dominican Republic etc… It is a common misconception but peacock bass are actually not a member of the bass family. Even though they are referred to as bass, they are actually members of the Cichlid family. Peacock bass is a general name for two types of fish one being the speckled peacock bass and the other being the royal peacock bass. The speckled peacock bass is the largest out of the two and can grow to around 4 feet long which is outstanding for a fish. The royal peacock bass is the smallest, with its maximum length of around 1 foot.
The Black carp originated in many of the Pacific drainage areas of eastern Asia, China, and parts of Russia and Vietnam. Black carp was introduced to the United States in the 1970’s to fish hatcheries and to control the populations of disease carrying snails in ponds. Flooding is the main factor to thank for the release of the black carp, which quickly turned into an invasion of the waterways. The Black carp is a medium size fish with the opportunity to become an extremely large fish if the conditions are favorable. “Based on Asian records, large adults may be more than 1.5 m total length and 70 kg or more in weight”(Nico,L.G). The black and grass carp is close to identical in regard to the characteristics of one another. However, the black carp is a slightly lighter color of black, with extremely large scales on the entire body. A black carp has human like molars as teeth that are used to crush snails and mollusks. With a slightly pointed snout that is a likely adaptation used to filter through the bottom of water bodies in search of food. The physical build of a black carp exhibits the design of a bottom-dwelling feeder. Sporting a long snout, large powerful human molar like teeth the black carp is built to succeed in water full of snails and mollusks. This means that the populations of already near extinct native snails and mollusks are at great risk of being
Stronger currents at this location of the river attract many who enjoy rafting and tubing down river on hot summer days. For the most part the banks of the river have virtually gone untouched allowing the natural beauty of the river’s vegetation and wildlife to flourish. As you float down the river you can experience the sights of baby ducks swimming behind their mother, otters, several species of birds, an occasional bald eagle, and beautiful wildflowers lining the banks, all a part of the area’s natural habitat. As you move farther downstream, the dynamics of the river dramatically change, gone are the swift currents, the river widens and its waters become calm and serene; perfect conditions for boating, canoeing, and fishing. The vegetation of the sand and soil riverbed support an abundance of species of fish. Trout, steelheads, and salmon are the most sought after fish in the Muskegon, there is also a substantial population of smallmouth bass, walleye, and pike. The excellent fishing conditions of the Muskegon River has been a financial source for business as it attracts many tourists to the area. The quiet waters of the Muskegon just south of Big Rapids is my favorite part of the river, it is where I made memories fishing with my son, and witnessed his excitement of catching his first
Habitats: Common carp can inhabit a wide range of habitats such as lakes, manmade impoundments, but they prefer lower sections of rivers (usually with slow to moderately flowing water), especially those with turbid water.
Although surf beach fishing can be done all along the Oregon coast line, the best places for Surfperch seashore fishing in Oregon are beaches with inclines. They have the best riptides. These riptides create "pockets" in the sand that usually catch fish. The southern and central Oregon coastline has the most steep sloped beaches but some people prefer the northern coastline.
This creature can grow up to 7 plus feet and can weigh up to 300 pounds. They are rarely seen in the great lakes, however, this is their natural habitat. These fish often live on the bottom of the lake and often coast the shoreline. This particular type of fish tries to avoid salt water because they can get eaten by larger fish like sharks. This fish is typically solid dark brown in color with a bright white belly. The Lake Sturgeon was once apart of the major northern lakes like the Great Lakes, Hudson Bay, and the Mississippi River.¨ They also have been found in 19-20 different States. These fish are sometimes referred to as ¨Freshwater Monsters¨¨ (http://www.britannica.com/animal/sturgeon-fish) . The Sturgeon is a very large fish and it doesn't have many predators the only other large fish that can kill it is a large shark or killer whale.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature the Channel Catfish is neither endangered nor at risk of being endangered. The Channel Catfish is raised at fish farms and is a very popular fish in regards to food. The Channel Catfish is the third most desired fish to catch in Texas behind the bass and crappie. The Channel Catfish is the most common catfish in North America. Studies taking place in Iowa have shown that the weight of catfish per mile of streams is anywhere between five hundred and five thousand pounds.
When fishing on any lake, locating bass can be difficult sometimes. In order to locate these cunning fish, it helps to find schools of their favorite prey. Bass are guaranteed to be close by their food source and using this technique will help you to land that largemouth or smallmouth bass you are seeking.
Freshwater fish are the most diverse type of fish but also the type of fish that is studied the most (Ross 2013). Lakes are one of the biggest bodies of water that freshwater fish succeed. Fish thrive in lakes because the water is high quality, no infestation of nonnative weeds or exotic fish. The environment is perfect for freshwater fish, these include the popular largemouth bass and many species of sunfish. Some other species that live in lakes are Catfish, Gars, Bowfish, Minnows, Perch and Bass (Whitney et al. 2004). Rivers and streams are bodies of water that are important for freshwater to thrive. Streams vary in the topography of their banks and the soil of the band and also the amount of light and shade they receive. The variation brings diversity of fish species. Florida’s stream provides habitats for about one hundred species of freshwater fish. Rivers also have a diverse array of freshwater fish. The Apalachicola River has 83 species of freshwater fish. Many rivers contain many freshwater species that are rare, endangered and
Native trout like live baits. Generally excellent as baits, live baits would be best used when trout fishing inside flowing waters of your stream or perhaps a river. Some instances of live baits are nightcrawlers, hellgrammites, large insects, worms, and minnow. If you want a long cast, the nightcrawlers you have must be in the right weight.