• We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo

Snakehead Fishing in New Jersey

Shenanigans said:
they are not searching for better habitat. the habitat is suitable and as they breed, their numbers spread out and they colonize new areas. They will by no means stay in a local river in the amazon. If anything, they will do just fine and spread out all over the amazon. There are also alot of large predators that will keep them in check down there.

Still, the major problems in the US are the poor information about the snakeheads(you can easily see that in this thread)
Also, its the poor mentality of the fisherman. As Mn_rebel points out, fisherman even kill native "trash" fish to save introduced sport fish.
Click to expand...

Ohh..got it now. Agree that the problem is the poor information..

Thanks.
 
joe jaskot said:
Large snakeheads have few natural predators aside from man. That is the major problem with introducing them into other waters.
Click to expand...
Of course most large snakeheads have few predators just like other large predatory fish in same waters. However snakehead fry have plenty of predators, just like the fry of native predatory fishes.
 
These fish have thousands of babies a year. And now at these fishing spots you'll catch a lot of snakeheads but if you get 1-2 bass your lucky. They are well over 2 feet long so nothing can eat em. They really are dominating the area. Since its colder up here in the winter the largemouth bass doesn't get as big as they do down south. I 5 pound bass up here is huge. If they were contained to a pond or lake here and there it would be great but that is not the case.
 
njbudman81 said:
These fish have thousands of babies a year. And now at these fishing spots you'll catch a lot of snakeheads but if you get 1-2 bass your lucky. They are well over 2 feet long so nothing can eat em. They really are dominating the area. Since its colder up here in the winter the largemouth bass doesn't get as big as they do down south. I 5 pound bass up here is huge. If they were contained to a pond or lake here and there it would be great but that is not the case.
Click to expand...
Just because you caught two bass on that day, doesn't means the snakeheads are responsible for largemouth bass populations decreasing. Of course nothing can eat a 2 foot bass, unless your a muskellunge or a giant flathead catfish.
 
MN_Rebel said:
No, there was never a lack of food supply. The cold water simply slow their metabolism cause the fishes eat less. The snakehead actually went up north as well.
Click to expand...

That's ok..

MN_Rebel said:
Just because you thinks that snakeheads won't able to spread away in Amazon, doesn't mean you have an ACTUAL IDEA what would happened if they were released. They will fit in Amazon very nicely. To be fair, most giant catfish of Amazon prefer crabs, snails and anything on bottom and arapaima doesn't seems they can tackle down anything large due to the mouth size. Most piranhas were scared of anything and they seldom attacks healthy large fish. So it leaves you few predators: dorado, payara, wolffish and giant peacock bass. Believe it or not snakeheads DO coexisted with peacock bass in Florida and Hawaii.
Click to expand...

I don't have any idea, that's why I put it here into discussion...I never told that they're NOT ABLE to spread away, they can do it as well as you can see it in USA...

Most giant catfish prefer crabs ?? How many crabs a RTC, Jaú or Piraíba must eat to be well feed in nature ? Come on...that fishes must/need eat something bigger than crabs. Try to keep a RTC in a comm. tank and just feed it with crabs, then, you will see your other fishes going away.
Piranhas like RED BELLY don't attack healthy fish...Black Piranha does. The growth rage of Amazon Fishes are by far, faster than other fishes...An Arapaima of 3 weeks age can eat a Snakehead with the same age...Predatory fish don't need to swallow the hole fish, they CAN eat something that doesn't fit all in their mouths, but they are not used to it.

I don't believe that they co exist with P. Bass in Florida and Hawaii, I know that they do...but, what kind of P. Bass ? What's the max size ? The growth rage compared with the Snakehead ?

Just to clear the things...never crossed my mind realease a Snakehead into a non native country, I'm just wondering how it would be.
 
These giant catfish do feeding on crabs very heavily but of course they will add few fish to their diet but the crabs are their main food. Black Piranha are solo hunters and rarely form a schooling group, unlike the schooling Red Belly Piranhas.

I believe that Peacocks in Florida/Hawaii are Mono-hybrids and they are known to prey on young snakeheads.
 
njbudman81 said:
These fish have thousands of babies a year. And now at these fishing spots you'll catch a lot of snakeheads but if you get 1-2 bass your lucky. They are well over 2 feet long so nothing can eat em. They really are dominating the area. Since its colder up here in the winter the largemouth bass doesn't get as big as they do down south. I 5 pound bass up here is huge. If they were contained to a pond or lake here and there it would be great but that is not the case.
Click to expand...

Maryland's bass aren't large like bass down south either and their populations don't appear to be affected on a large scale by the snakeheads as everyone once thought they would. It is very true that the snakeheads breed at a high rate and have thousands of babies. The bass and even the panfish do a good job of keeping them in check. But ontop of all of that, the snakeheads are cannibals. I've watched juvenile snakeheads eat slightly smaller juvenile snakeheads. The mother protects them but doesn't necessarily care for them. If the parents stray from the nest or the juveniles stray, they're certain to become food for another predator.

There are so many factors that affect the amount of bass in an area, the other predators are just one small factor, there could be several reasons you're only catching 1-2 bass now.

I'm not condoning the release of snakeheads and I'd even say that I'm on the side of the fence that agrees with killing them. The biggest issue at this point is the lack of information we have regarding the species and how they interact with the ecosystem. It will be several years before we have a really good picture of the effect that the snakehead truly has on native ecosystems. It's easier to kill some now in a, seemingly futile, attempt at population control rather than letting them all live and winding up with a potentially bigger problem on your hands down the road. Plus, they're tasty and put up a good fight. Hook into one, enjoy the fight and enjoy the meal.
 
Snakeheads guard their young. I've caught parents by dabbing just a plain red hook in the water by the school of babies. So I don't think the panfish are doing a number on the babies. I watching first hand how fast these fish are spreading.

Babies this small

8b9fed4e.jpg


Are growing to this in roughly 2-3 months
c0f425ac.jpg


This size is extremely common now
52919c3a.jpg


Believe me when I say they are spreading like crazy
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom