Catfish NOW – June 2023

Lots of Ways to Catch Catfish

June has always been my favorite month to catch sizeable catfish. For most parts of the country, the catfish spawn is on while in the Deep South, it is over for the most part. Either way, they are hungry. The really cool part of this, you can catch them on very unthinkable baits that you may want to try out yourself.

Spawning Time Facts

The swollen head on this big channel cat indicates it is male ready to guard a nest full of eggs. When the fish is guarding its eggs, it may not feed for days, making it tough to catch.     Understanding Catfish Spawning Behaviors By Keith “Catfish” Sutton Catfish involved with summer egg laying and […]

How to Catch Cats When They Spawn

This steep cut bank with snags near it is a perfect example of where a catfish might find a hole to nest in. Catfish can be caught tight up to the bank near these holes.     Strategies for the Spawn by Brad Durick Spawning season can be one of the toughest times to catch […]

Catfish in Saltwater? You Bet

Gafftopsail catfish often show up in state agency surveys of shallow-water species. The fish are opportunistic and feed on live or dead items from the top of the water column to the bottom. (Credit La. Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries)     Gafftopsail Catfish: Saltwater Bad Boys Are Fun in a Pinch by Alan Clemons […]

Electronics by Wiegmann

I Broke It! by Brad Wiegmann Save $$$ by repairing your broken sonar transducer cable.       If you haven’t broken one yet, you will sooner or later. Even though sonar transducer cables appear to be flexible and well fortified, in reality these cables can easily be pinched, pulled or cut, resulting in a broken [...]

Catfish Basics #156—Water Temps & Flathead Baits with Matt “CatMatt” Jones

In a continuing effort to help all you new anglers curb your flathead frustration, let me offer another quick tip to help you improve your alpha predator game. Reaching back some 20 plus years and thinking about all the questions I’ve been asked the most, I’m pretty sure “What bait should I use?” is right […]

Catfish Gear #65

Off Shore Tackle Planer Board Releases In recent years, more and more anglers are using in-line planer boards for catfishing, and many of those anglers have learned that most traditional pinch-pad line releases will only function best with monofilament lines. Fortunately, Off Shore Tackle now makes available a new generation of line releases designed to […]

World Records Just for Kids

IGFA, the organization responsible for keeping official world record fishing listings, has established a special world-record category for kids only. (IGFA Photo)   IGFA Establishes World Records for Kids Only By Richard Simms   The International Game Fish Association (IGFA), the global conservation nonprofit that manages world records for all game fish species worldwide, recently […]

Flathead Honeyhole in the North

Minnesota DNR fisheries research biologists hold large flathead catfish netted for a three-year study to determine population and size structure in a portion of the Minnesota River.   Big Cats in the Minnesota River By Keith “Catfish” Sutton This northern river may be one of the country’s best places to catch a whopper flathead. The […]

Agency Stocks Catfish for Urban/Suburban Anglers

TPWD Stocking Lone Star Lakes With Catfish Source: Texas Parks & Wildlife Take the family fishing at Neighborhood Fishing lakes and ponds across Texas.   In a recent news release, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) said it will stock thousands of catfish at lakes across Texas from now into October. Part of the […]

A Father’s Love of Catfishing Passed Down to His Sons

In this old family photo, you can see a joyful spark in Rodney Crimm’s eyes as he hoists a 13-pound flathead that’s nearly as big as the eight-year-old angler.   Why We Catfish By Rodney Crimm From the banks of a farm pond to the open waters of big rivers and reservoirs, Rodney Crimm has […]

B’n’M How-to Video with Jay Gallop—Flatheads and Structure

B’n’M pro staff angler Jay Gallop describes the importance of structure when flathead fishing. In this video, he is fishing for flatheads on the Alabama River in Elmore County, Alabama. He urges anglers to find structure when targeting flatheads but not to worry so much about seeing fish on sonar. If it is good structure, […]