Virginia Wildlife Demo - 35

©King Montgomery

taken using bows and crossbows, mostly at
night with lights from the boat to spot the
fish in the shallows. e winning team
nabbed 25 fish for 230 pounds, earning the
five men a $1,500 first-place prize. A team of
youngsters, none over 16 years, captured second place for $585, reported Fears.
In Virginia waters, "Bow and arrow may
be used to take common carp, northern
snakehead, and gar (fishing license required)
during day and night hours (24 hrs.), except
from waters stocked with trout. Spearguns
and poisoned arrows are prohibited. Snakeheads must be immediately killed and reported to VDGIF." (From the Department's
freshwater fishing regulations.)

It seems fishing for Northern snakeheads
with bass fishing tackle and bows or crossbows is getting more popular. eir numbers
continue to rise from that initial encounter
with the exotic species in 2004 when a bass
fisherman hooked one in the back of Virginia's Little Hunting Creek. e fact that
snakeheads taste darn good might help with
removing at least some of the population.
"Get that dang trash fish oﬀ my lure," I
joked with Captain Mike Starrett, a longtime Potomac River fishing guide and friend.
We were on Mattawomen Creek late in the
day and the nearly 4-pound largemouth bass
had exploded on my black surface frog pattern. is evening I wanted to catch some
NSH, but the bass kept getting in the way.
Suddenly the light dimmed and clouds
moved in as darkness approached. It would
have been a great time for NSH (and bass)
fishing since both species seem to get active at
night. But oﬀ in the distance over the main
stem of the Potomac in Virginia, lightning
began streaking the skies and it was time to
get oﬀ the water. (Even if lightning is a long
way oﬀ, if you are in a boat it's time to leave,
particularly when you're waving a graphite
rod around. It is an eﬃcient lightning rod and
seriously could light up your life and end it if
the supercharged electricity hits it.)

NSH are found in the same habitat as
largemouth bass. From spring through fall
many fish are in the backs of tributary rivers
and creeks, and in shallow bays out of the
main current as the tide ebbs and flows four
times a day. And both species are active at
night and during other periods of limited visibility.
Both species spawn in the spring depending on water temperatures, and the
NSH is known to reproduce more than once
a year if conditions are good. I don't like to

fish bass on the spawning redds, but snakes are
another matter. NSH are good parents and
protect their spawn from predators for several
weeks after the baby snakeheads hatch. is is
a good time to catch NSH because they are aggressive toward intruders that mess with their
young, and will hit lures or flies more easily.
Still, they are not an easy fish to catch.
NSH and bass are active predators that
eat much the same things: smaller fishes, amphibians and reptiles, crustaceans, insects,
and, yes, each other. And NSH and bass will

©King Montgomery

Taking Snakeheads

Capt. Steve Chaconas (L) and DGIF ﬁsheries biologist John Odenkirk (also shown on previous page)
cast the shoreline of Little Hunting Creek for snakeheads.

If you land a snakehead, use a Boga-Grip or look-alike to ﬁrmly hold the ﬁsh's lower jaw and keep
your hand away from the teeth.
www.HuntFishVA.com

http://www.HuntFishVA.com

Virginia Wildlife Demo

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Virginia Wildlife Demo