# PaddleFish/Spoonbill In the Great Miami River



## BMayhall (Jun 9, 2011)

I've been fishing the GMR forever and never have I caught or seen someone else catch a Paddlefish out of the GMR untill I landed one today at the Lower Damn in Hamilton.


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## Perch (Apr 5, 2004)

WOW thats a cool catch !!


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## lovelandfly (Mar 11, 2010)

sweet find!


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## nitsud (May 22, 2010)

Now that's a first post! Nice catch!


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## BMayhall (Jun 9, 2011)

Yeah I come to this site all the time and read what going on so I finally decided to join..


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## willyb021 (Jun 1, 2009)

thats one weird fish. seen a video of one caught at pike island locks a year or so back, but thats the only other one ive seen. what you catch him on?


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## BMayhall (Jun 9, 2011)

I caught it on a Red Eye Shad RattleTrap


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## CatBassCrap (Apr 25, 2008)

Did it hit the bait or did you snag it? 

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## BMayhall (Jun 9, 2011)

It hit the bait which is suprising because they are Filter Feeders I had my hook right in the corner of its mouth...Snagging is a popular method of catching these fish. But it put up a hell of a fight with 8lb line


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## treytd32 (Jun 12, 2009)

lower dam never ceases to suprise me lol sweet catch.. I'm still waiting to pull out that bull shark or piranha I let go in there a few years back :T


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## fontinalis (Mar 29, 2011)

BMayhall said:


> It hit the bait which is suprising because they are Filter Feeders I had my hook right in the corner of its mouth...Snagging is a popular method of catching these fish. But it put up a hell of a fight with 8lb line


i hate to break it to you, but you probably snagged it in the mouth, they swim with their mouth agape, so it isn't unlikely, as you said, they are filter feeders. Still a great find


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## Tediaslider (Jan 11, 2011)

this is the second one ive seen caught there in less than a week


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## I'll go in after it (Feb 5, 2011)

I hear those are really good to eat but not sure if you can keep them . Coming up the river to spawn I expect . Great catch anyway but they don't go after anything so snagging it even in the mouth is most likely what happened . Funny I was going over there for the first time tommorow heard good thing's about that place . There is a snagging season on the Ohio not sure when it is but it is in Kentucky's regulation's . I have also seen them in a couple gravel pit's I scuba dove in but somebody put them in there no doubt . Oh last week somebody got one at Alum creek near columbus said it was his second so there must be a few around in Ohio . I would have loved to see it Congrat's


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## I'll go in after it (Feb 5, 2011)

Uh oh protected in Ohio as a threatened specie's must be released .


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## Big James (Mar 30, 2011)

I was there and he released it completely unharmed. Only one I have ever seen and it will probably remain that way, glad I got to see it. Congratulations man that is a once in a lifetime catch snag or not and good job on the quick release!


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## I'll go in after it (Feb 5, 2011)

Ok seem's they do hit minnow's at least enough for someone to catch 5 that way by the Meldhal Dam . There is a carnivorous specie's in China so maybe their primary food source is plankton . They are legal to catch or snag in Kentucky but not in Ohio . In Indiana you can catch them on the Ohio only . The egg's are sold as caviar but both the egg's and flesh get a warning from Kentucky every year about consumption . Interesting fish . They do get stocked at various lake's around the midwest and are commercially fished in the Ohio river . Noted for the fight they put up . Unlike other fish that will move upcurrent if the water is flowing paddlefish will wait till there is no heavy current to move upstream . Maybe that's while they are there now


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## BMayhall (Jun 9, 2011)

Big James said:


> I was there and he released it completely unharmed. Only one I have ever seen and it will probably remain that way, glad I got to see it. Congratulations man that is a once in a lifetime catch snag or not and good job on the quick release!


Thanks man it was a hell of a Fight bringin him in...were you the guy who was on the left of me catchin the sauger?


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## SConner (Mar 3, 2007)

That is extremely cool catch and even better on the release. Congratulations!


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## Big James (Mar 30, 2011)

BMayhall said:


> Thanks man it was a hell of a Fight bringin him in...were you the guy who was on the left of me catchin the sauger?


No, I was up on the wall and came down to get a pic. I did catch a nice Saugeye and a few decent Smallies plus a snag Carp and Gar.


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## Big James (Mar 30, 2011)

I guess I should mention I shaved that big gnarly goatee that's in my pic off a couple of weeks ago which makes me look cometely different.


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## BMayhall (Jun 9, 2011)

Big James said:


> No, I was up on the wall and came down to get a pic. I did catch a nice Saugeye and a few decent Smallies plus a snag Carp and Gar.


Ive been trying to get smallies out of there all week and had no luck...got a couple shovelheads down the river more and white bass


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## I'll go in after it (Feb 5, 2011)

Another comment , Did you know the egg's can be worth $800 per fish ? Wow I alway's dreamed of catching one of those but I would let it go as well Congrat's again


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## CatBassCrap (Apr 25, 2008)

BMayhall said:


> It hit the bait which is suprising because they are Filter Feeders I had my hook right in the corner of its mouth...Snagging is a popular method of catching these fish. But it put up a hell of a fight with 8lb line



That's why I asked. I've never heard of one caught like you did. Awesome
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## Dandrews (Oct 10, 2010)

Thats really cool! Ive never heard of one being caught up this way, congratulations! Kinda makes you wonder what else might be in there.


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## AnglinMueller (May 16, 2008)

Awesome catch!!! You never know what you'll pull out of the water at the the lower dam.


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## treytd32 (Jun 12, 2009)

I once caught a 2 for 1 there.. a car tire with an old world series reds t shirt in it.. best catch I've ever had at the lower dam lol it made a great christmas present for my brother


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## rcjohnson (Dec 11, 2008)

I never thought I would see one up this way. I have seen some real monsters snagged below the Markland dam.


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## backlashed (Mar 19, 2011)

The only live one's I've ever seen were on Grand Lake of the Cherokees in NE Oklahoma. Those fish are everywhere  there and they are leapers! If you ever get a chance to go down there its a great place to fish. Big like a TVA lake but very quiet, even on the weekends.

Great catch BTW!


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