# Bowfin?



## Chris Martin (Jan 9, 2017)

just wondering if anyone near central Ohio has ever caught a bowfin near Columbus. Just intrigued by these fish and would like to catch one. Any tips/tricks would be nice. Thank you.


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## Deazl666 (Mar 30, 2012)

Some travel to the lower Scioto might be in order...


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## Shaun69007 (Sep 2, 2009)

Muskingum River


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## CleoSpooner (Jan 11, 2009)

The portage River is full of them . They hit like a freight train. Go up river and get shallow, a swamp fish. They'll hit anything a bass will. I've seen them as big as 3 feet! My best is 26" and I don't fish for them. They are mean !!! Pike and Musky can't compare.
Called a Sunshine bass in lower LA. by Cajuns. I know a guy that will eat anything and he said he didn't care to eat another. Yellow meat like pike.
Seem to be a warm water fish. Pull harder then anything I've caught in Ohio , pound for pound. Mouth as big as their body. Eat anything including baby ducks. Very hard to get their mouth open to get a lure out, and will bite you. Luckily they don't have teeth like a pike. And you better have stout equipment. My biggest Carp is 42" and it just lumbered along. A 42" Bowfin would take your rod away from you and beat you with it ! They jump, usually on hook up, tail walk, and bulldog. If they weren't so ugly more people would fish for them.


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## jrose (Jul 16, 2012)

CleoSpooner said:


> The portage River is full of them . They hit like a freight train. Go up river and get shallow, a swamp fish. They'll hit anything a bass will. I've seen them as big as 3 feet! My best is 26" and I don't fish for them. They are mean !!! Pike and Musky can't compare.
> Called a Sunshine bass in lower LA. by Cajuns. I know a guy that will eat anything and he said he didn't care to eat another. Yellow meat like pike.
> Seem to be a warm water fish. Pull harder then anything I've caught in Ohio , pound for pound. Mouth as big as their body. Eat anything including baby ducks. Very hard to get their mouth open to get a lure out, and will bite you. Luckily they don't have teeth like a pike. And you better have stout equipment. My biggest Carp is 42" and it just lumbered along. A 42" Bowfin would take your rod away from you and beat you with it ! They jump, usually on hook up, tail walk, and bulldog. If they weren't so ugly more people would fish for them.


I agree with a lot of what you said but pike taste pretty good, prefer it over bass. Dog fish flesh is mushy.


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## Saugeye Tom (Oct 6, 2010)

And they have wicked teeth


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## polebender (Oct 29, 2011)

Saugeye Tom said:


> And they have wicked teeth


I'd recommend not to eat the teeth!


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## Saugeye Tom (Oct 6, 2010)

polebender said:


> I'd recommend not to eat the teeth!


Lol. Cleon mentioned they don't have teeth like pike....he's right they're bigger. A good ol.boy in Tennessee cooked some up for me once....wasn't to bad....


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## polebender (Oct 29, 2011)

Saugeye Tom said:


> Lol. Cleon mentioned they don't have teeth like pike....he's right they're bigger. A good ol.boy in Tennessee cooked some up for me once....wasn't to bad....


Yea, I've caught my share of them at Reelfoot! They're definitely vicious and you dont want to get your hands too close to their mouths! We never did eat any though!


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## Gundog1970 (Dec 25, 2015)

Quite a few years back I caught one at Hoover fishing for bass . I caught it on a jig . They put up quite a fight judging from the one I caught . I have had a couple other people tell me they caught them at Hoover while targeting other species.


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## Saugeye Tom (Oct 6, 2010)

polebender said:


> Yea, I've caught my share of them at Reelfoot! They're definitely vicious and you dont want to get your hands too close to their mouths! We never did eat any though!


 The guy that cooked also done some grass carp.....that was delicious....yup at reelfoot


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## Carpn (Apr 5, 2004)

Bowfin , mudfish , chopique, dogfish , grinnel.... Whatever you call em they fight like hell , have a mouth full of teeth , and have really soft mushy meat . They are a really cool fish . If your wanting to catch one in Ohio best just go fish metzgers marsh . As many there as I've seen anywhere . And as a bonus there's alot of nice pike and bass there to tide you over between bowfin


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## OnTheFly (Jul 30, 2010)

I have only caught one and that was out of Pymatuning while fishing for bass. Thought I had a really nice bass on at first, but was happy to see a bowfin as it was the first time I had caught one.


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## Chris Martin (Jan 9, 2017)

Thank you for all in the input. I can't wait for the weather to really break to get back out there


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## ittybittyfishy (May 28, 2010)

Killibuck creek has a decent population


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## Snyd (May 5, 2004)

Backwaters of the Ohio River in southern Ohio. I have not caught one but was with two different people that did.


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## Tastefishy (Jan 5, 2016)

I use to fish Alum Creek by a train trestle just west of Westerville road back in the day. Their is/was a big hole on the west side of it and I would catch them at night on the shallow flow side of it on worms. I have caught several of them in that area back 20 years ago.


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## greatmiami (Feb 4, 2014)

polebender said:


> Yea, I've caught my share of them at Reelfoot! They're definitely vicious and you dont want to get your hands too close to their mouths! We never did eat any though!


I had one mangle the skin on my thumb up pretty good about 3 years ago. I was just trying to unhook it and it struck at me a lot like a snapping turtle would! Then he didn't want to let go of me either, till I changed his mind with a rock. Thumb swelled up for a few days after lol nasty. They don't really have long teeth like pike, there just a bit longer than a catfish but when they get ahold they bite down hard and start writhing and doing the death role. I have caught quite a few over the years but that one was straight wicked! Be careful! Lol


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## greatmiami (Feb 4, 2014)

I was just looking at some pictures of there teeth and they're actually longer than I realized. Dang no wonder that thing tore me up!


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## Enthusiast (Jun 20, 2011)

They're common in Southern Ontario and the Thousand Islands area. And some are BIG. My son caught one like ten to twelve pounds. We were actually afraid of it so we didn't weigh it. Seriously. My son fought it in using a flippin' rod with 20 pound XT. It was a battle. They are pure muscle. I got the crankbait out of its mouth very carefully using some long needle nose pliers.


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## Chris Martin (Jan 9, 2017)

Thank you for all of the information. I hope I will be able to get on some in the spring. I will post pictures on here . If anyone else would like to go out in the spring and try and catch one of these powerful fish let me know.


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## NCbassattack (May 5, 2014)

We have them all over NC, they are most common in our eastern river systems and swamps. I agree they are tough critters, but would not compare their fight to a bass of equal weight, as they tend to come up and thrash around, most don't give the hard bulldog runs a big bass can do.


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## 50twizz (Apr 14, 2013)

I've caught 2 up in the marina on Lake Erie by port Clinton! They fight like crazy but I heard you are supposed to kill them


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## Deazl666 (Mar 30, 2012)

50twizz said:


> ...but I heard you are supposed to kill them


Umm, no.


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## maxpower (Jul 2, 2008)

50twizz said:


> ...but I heard you are supposed to kill them


Definitely not. They are native, not invasive. Like all native predators, they help keep all fish populations healthy by consuming the weak, diseased, deformed, slow, and/or overpopulated. Additionally, predators generally include whatever prey species are available in their diet, whether they are game fish or not. Killing a predator species to try to save a preferred fish species will not work. If one species of predator were totally eliminated, another predator species population would grow to fill that void and eat just as many of whatever preferred fish species they were trying to 'help'. If there are too few predators, the other species in the body of water end up with stunted growth due to lack of sufficient food.

(Not trying to flame you 50twizz, just putting this info out there again for anyone who isn't aware of the biological role that predators play.)


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## Fisherman 3234 (Sep 8, 2008)

Snyd said:


> Backwaters of the Ohio River in southern Ohio. I have not caught one but was with two different people that did.


They are definitely there!!!


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## Deazl666 (Mar 30, 2012)

maxpower said:


> Definitely not. They are native, not invasive. Like all native predators, they help keep all fish populations healthy by consuming the weak, diseased, deformed, slow, and/or overpopulated. Additionally, predators generally include whatever prey species are available in their diet, whether they are game fish or not. Killing a predator species to try to save a preferred fish species will not work. If one species of predator were totally eliminated, another predator species population would grow to fill that void and eat just as many of whatever preferred fish species they were trying to 'help'. If there are too few predators, the other species in the body of water end up with stunted growth due to lack of sufficient food.
> 
> (Not trying to flame you 50twizz, just putting this info out there again for anyone who isn't aware of the biological role that predators play.)


They are also the sole surviving species of their order.


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## Jarnos123 (Aug 8, 2011)

Wills creek spillway. 
I know it sucks but you might catch a few saugeyes before you hit a bowfin. ( those pesky nuisance saugeyes)


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## hatfield75 (Jun 6, 2009)

A buddy of mine caught one up in Galena while catfishing the feeder creek. I wouldn't necessarily target them at Hoover, but they are in there.


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## Betain (Feb 10, 2006)

50twizz said:


> I've caught 2 up in the marina on Lake Erie by port Clinton! They fight like crazy but I heard you are supposed to kill them


I have heard that before it is normally from someone who thinks it is an actual Snakehead which you are suppose to kill. They do look a little similar but Bowfin are perfectly native and natural to the waters they are in. I don't believe they where ever actually stocked anywhere, probably more native to most to these waters then even bass or catfish are. 

As for catching them, I have caught them quite a bit in East Harbor, I have seen them hit crank baits as well as carp bait sitting on the bottom. They do put up quite a fight, I think the first time I caught one I was hoping it was burbot (which I have always wanted to try) but was quickly told what it was, still a cool fish.


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## ChromeBone (Oct 3, 2011)

Is there anywhere in Central you can catch a Burbot? I've only hear of them from Erie.


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## Saugeye Tom (Oct 6, 2010)

ChromeBone said:


> Is there anywhere in Central you can catch a Burbot? I've only hear of them from Erie.


They prefer colder water....lawyers, burbot, lingcod all the same fish. They call them lawyers cause they are bottom feeders and full of guts. Boiled they are excellent table fare. Taste like lobster !!!!


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## Betain (Feb 10, 2006)

ChromeBone said:


> Is there anywhere in Central you can catch a Burbot? I've only hear of them from Erie.


I have heard the same as SaugeyeTom, and even in the Ohio part of Erie they are a rare fish and normally only in cold months I would love to get in to them. I keep saying it but one of these years I am going to head to the Eelpout (MN slang for Burbot) Festival in Walker MN just so I can try and catch and eat one, might as well take some friends and make a long weekend out of it.


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