Channel Cats on the Choptank River

Type: Tidal
Region: Eastern
Location: Choptank River

Sunday evening after a long day of yard work, the waters of the Choptank enticed me to take some time for myself and have a seat on the river bank, watch the sunset and try fishing for some catfish. I had placed a few garden worms in a can from earlier digging in the yard and they were soon attracting the attention of some small white perch which I planned to use for bait. There was a good strong incoming tide and it did not take long before I started catching some nice 4lb to 8lb channel catfish, a few white catfish and even an American eel on pieces of white perch. I kept four channel cats; which were more than enough to provide a week’s worth of fried catfish meals. Fisheries biologists working on the Choptank River have noted that channel catfish populations are up so these plentiful and good eating fish provide a fun opportunity for fishermen between perch spawning runs and the opening of striped bass season. Channel catfish can be identified by their brown color on top, forked tail and a smaller mouth than the white catfish which is light gray in color, has a large broad head and mouth and a less forked tail than the channel catfish.

Tags: channel catfish, white catfish