Snakeheads

[Mike]

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Before anyone starts killing snakeheads they should be darn sure that they can tell the difference between the candidate species (for threatened status), the native bowfin, and the northern snakehead. Almost every fish reported to me statewide as having been killed or held live for identification has been a bowfin, not a snakehead. That has been especially true in the Bucks County portion of the Delaware and its tributaries. I have had at least four other species of fish reported to me by well-meaning anglers as being snakeheads. Bowfins are present in ponds, lakes, rivers, and streams. Before acting, check the Virginia fisheries web page for a very good comparison of the two species. Note, however, do not use the spot in the tail or lack thereof as a deciding factor......female bowfin have the spot, males don't. Finally, the best characteristic for amateurs is the simplest, and it does not appear on web sites. A bowfin has no scales on the top of its head; it is a skinhead, just like a catfish. A snakehead has a mosaic pattern of larger scales on top of its head, just like a snake.

 

[sandfly]

Mike I have lived in bucks all my life and never saw or heard of a bowfin in the county. I thought they were only in the western part of the state???

 

[pcray1231]

Sandfly, while NW PA is the most famous, prolific fishery (Presque Isle Bay and Conneat Lake), I do know they are in a few central PA lakes as well as the Delaware.

 

[dc410]

The first bowfin I ever saw was about 35 years ago in a northern Lancaster County lake while fishing for LMB and bluegills. We had a stringer of slab sized bluegills and when I pulled in the stringer the bowfin was attached to the other end having lunch.

 

[afishinado]

As per Mike's post - VA Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries info on Snakeheads and Bowfin:

Snakehead Fish
As a family, snakeheads are native to parts of Asia and Africa. The northern snakehead is native to China, and possibly Korea and Russia.
Typically found in a wide variety of habitats
Northern snakeheads grow to a maximum length of about 33 inches
Generally tan in appearance, with dark brown mottling; body somewhat elongated; long dorsal fin; jaws contain numerous canine-like teeth (similar to pike or pickerel)
Capable of breathing air using an air bladder that works as a primitive lung (not found in most fish)
Able to hibernate in cracks and crevices during cold temperatures and to go dormant in the mud during droughts
Voracious top-level predator, eating mostly fish, but also eats other aquatic wildlife and frogs
Capable of moving short distances on land using its pectoral fins; can live out of water for as many as three days
Favored as a food fish throughout southeast Asia; also believed to have curative powers. Also sold in the aquarium trade.
Four species have been found in the U.S., in eight states, probably the result of releases from personal aquariums or to develop local food sources
No natural predators in the U.S.

Bowfin
In Virginia, native to the Coastal Plain and possibly lower Piedmont; occasionally found in other parts of the state
Typically associated with swamps and sluggish open marsh-fringed rivers; found in both shallower and deeper waters in Virginia
Grows to a maximum length of about 32 inches
Generally tan-olive in appearance, with dark olive reticulation; body somewhat elongated; long dorsal fin; bony scales; jaws contain small canine and peglike teeth; black spot at the base of the tail (more prominent in males)
Capable of breathing surface air using an air bladder as a lung (not found in most fish)
Able to withstand periodic droughts by going dormant in the mud
Nocturnal, but most active at dusk and dawn; predatory generalist eating fish, aquatic invertebrates and frogs

Why Should We Care?
Exotic species like snakeheads may have significant impacts in the U.S., including:

Impacts to local fish populations through predation or displacement and competition for food; disruption of native aquatic systems
Transmission of parasites or diseases, including those affecting humans
Potential impacts on local economies dependent on fishing or related resources

What Can You Do?
If you find a snakehead fish, kill it....

link to source (VA Dept of Game & Inland fisheries): http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/fishing/snakehead-id.asp

 

[streamerguy]

My family has a cottage in NW PA near some great bowfin fisheries. I only fished Conneaut Lake once, but I have fished the Geneva Swamp(conneaut marsh) and French Creek and have seen dead bowfin along the banks of both places. And the sad part is some of these people who are killing the bowfin know they aren't snakeheads, but they still think the bowfin eat all the other fish. PIB, Conneaut, Geneva, and French Creek are all fantastic fisheries. The bowfin aren't having any effect on the other fish there.

 

[glenrockonthefly]

Well, I'll pipe in....

Let me start with, we should try to eliminate any snakehead we catch in my opinion, but it may be a lost battle already

Let me also remind everyone that 2 of our most prized gamefish in central PA are non-native...

Brown trout I beleive are european and brought by early settlers (for that point rainbows are native to western US)

Susquehanna/juniata Smallmouth were introduced via railroad in mid-1800's according to McClane's, native to lake Erie, and Ohio rive but not Susky (I could be wrong, but pretty confident)

So we may just be in for the next wave of screwing up eco-systems snakeheads and flatheads keep your eye out for wild pigs!

I will stress that I am not happy with either snakeheads or flatheads and would like to see both eliminated, just don't know how....

just my rant!

 

[pcray1231]

Well, to be fair, bowfin are crazy aggressive and voracious, just like snakeheads are. Pretty similar in that regard.

What's unknown is whether they may overpopulate more, or perhaps inhabit different habitats, thus exposing new ecosystems to such a fish.

 

[glenrockonthefly]

oh I forgot to mention carp....

 

[Fishidiot]

glenrockonthefly wrote:

Susquehanna/juniata Smallmouth were introduced via railroad in mid-1800's according to McClane's, native to lake Erie, and Ohio rive but not Susky (I could be wrong, but pretty confident)

Correct.

With respect to snakeheads - yes, they're probably here to stay and yes we should whack any we catch. With that said, I've followed the snakehead story in the lower Potomac for the last several years. When they first exploded there.... there was much gnashing of teeth and doomsday predictions about the imminent collapse of the LM bass fishery. I think the verdict is still out on how much impact they have had (or will have) on LM bass as bass fishing remains pretty good.
What is clear is that they have developed some fans. They hang out in shallow water, hit lures (esp topwater lures), with gusto, fight hard, and taste great. Would I wish them gone? Sure. Will they eventually become a popular game fish instead? There is some evidence that the answer is increasingly becoming "yes." People are actually booking trips to the tidal Potomac (go Fred!) to target these exotic and powerful game fish. Time will tell.

 

[TimMurphy]

Dear Mike,

Having caught bowfin in PA and in FL but having never caught a snakehead I have to say that anyone who could cannot correctly distinguish an adult snakehead from a bowfin should not be fishing.

Those two fish pictured in afish's post couldn't be much less alike. Different head shapes, coloration, completely different fin shapes and locations, about the only things those two fish have in common are two eyes and a butthole.

Regards,

Tim Murphy

 

[Fredrick]

This is a good video on snakeheads in virginia

 

[ryguyfi]

Good Vid Fred. I see no problem in them being a future game fish since there's nothing short of poisoning the waters they inhabit. If there are rules in place now to kill a fish then I would do it, but that's just me. I will admit it would be fun to fish for them if I ever get the chance to.

 

[Fredrick]

First day out all I caught was mosquito bites . Definitely in the right place though .

 

[ryguyfi]

Not smart enough to catch the dumb stockies huh?