Man I didn't know any better first time I had ever seen or caught one had to look it up after I caught it to find out its name. Don't know until you try I guess.

When I first moved to Florida I was a straight up bowfin catchin maniac. Love those things!!!My best is 9lbs.3 oz. out of the Withlacoochee river.

First caught a grinnel cat back in 65 in a dallas county swamp near millers ferry- think it was boga chito or chikatchee ??? Anyway im reeling this thing and a 2 foot gator latches on- i just took my knife stabbed both in the head.

You tell some of the tallest tales I've ever heard. I bet you've flown planes upside down and punched Bigfoot in the face too haven't you?

I don't think he's gonna be able to answer you

Damn. This guy is awesome.

I know. I am gonna miss him.

Does anyone have a pic of a bowfin ?

That's a nasty looking critter. Trash fish I presume ?

The state of Alabama doesn't consider them a game fish so it's open season

I guess that would depend on who is catching bowfin during the spawn and selling the roe. But yes most consider it a trash fish. 1/12 of the female bowfin weight during the spawn is roe, the roe is being sold to processors for around $18 lb or so. The companies that are selling the roe are getting anywhere from $8-$17 per ounce.

In Louisiana commercial fishermen can only keep bowfin 22" min total length. Recreational fishing 16” min total length.

http://www.cajuncaviar.com/

http://www.earthy.com/Bowfin-Choupique-Caviar-4-oz-P7.aspx

Is that what some call a mud fish ?

yes

Pretty good read on them.

http://outdooralabama.com/fishing/freshwater/fish/bowfin/

Wow! As many as we catch here I'd love for someone to open up a market here to collect them!

Wow. If that's the case then I know some backwater ponds that are worth a small fortune. LOL!

I drained a beaver swamp that was about 40 acres. There was 1 deep pool that all the gar and bowfin got trapped in. I took a huge dip net and scooped them out. If there was 1 in there there was 3-400. I just left them. Closest river was 1/2 mile and I wasn't toting that many that far.

I have funny story about a Grinnel that I tell pretty well. I doubt I can do it justice in written form because I can't write like an old black man talks. I'll give it a whirl.

When I was at Auburn, my neighbor and I use to drive over to West Point Lake and bowfish. We would wade in the shallows and shoot. We didn't have money to put gas in a truck and boat.

We would tie a rope to our waist and put the carp and occasional Grinnel on the stringer and take them back to Auburn to sell them for gas money to the Asian students and to the local blacks. We'd sell carp for $1 and Grinnel for $2.

We shot a nice sized Grinnel one day and stopped by the housing projects on the northwest side of town. There were several old black men who sat out under a tree every day. We pulled up and asked them about buying some fish. When they walked over to the truck, one of them said, "Whooooo boy, look at the toofies on that Grinnel trout." They picked over the carp and one of them bought one. That one old man just kept poking the Grinnel with a stick. He finally popped up and said, "I sho know who would love to buy that Grinnel trout. Ol Joe sho would love to have it." and just chuckled. I said, "well, reckon Joe want's to buy it, and he said, "Naw, Joe dead." End of story. LOL

That's much better in person.

No harm no foul there. Some people grind the meat up and fry it like salmon patties. I don't care for it but some do.



You should still be serving time in prison for this however. LOL! Most inedible fish in America. I'd just as soon eat a shad or a skip jack.