An Experiment & the Coppernose Bluegill

Yesterday I did an experiment on Instagram to prove that gar do not "eat all the fish and then people don't get any." Many anglers believe that gar are a "bad fish" and kill them on sight, leaving their bodies to rot. This is illegal in Texas, but people do it any way.

In this little Instagram experiment, I went to a creek where longnose gar are present. I baited my hook with a worm and cast right where the gar were hanging out. In a span of a couple of hours, I caught four species of game fish: the largemouth bass, the bluegill, the channel catfish, and the longear sunfish. I probably could have found more, but I can only fish for two or three hours in the morning because of the heat. These fish weren't scarce, either! I would get a bite almost immediately every time I cast!

I also saw what I will call a mystery fish. It was very large and fat. I don't know what it was; maybe it was a carp.

Today I went to Brandy Branch Reservoir/Pirkey Power Plant in Hallsville. I was disappointed because this lake is mostly covered in hydrilla, making bank fishing impossible. The only spot I could fish was directly on the concrete ramp. I caught the golden topminnow on my microfish hook and a puzzling sunfish. It looked like a bluegill, but had red fins. I couldn't find anything like it in my Freshwater Fishes of Texas book. I looked at the lake's stocking history for clues. Coppernose bluegill were stocked in the 80s. I had heard of the coppernose on Youtube, but I didn't know what it looks like. I looked up the description and it matched: a bluegill with a red tail that has white margin.

The coppernose is a subspecies native to Florida, not Texas, which would explain why it's not in my Texas fish book.

Overall, I wouldn't go back to this lake or recommend it unless you have a boat to get to the middle of the lake, past the hydrilla.

Next week's adventure: what fish are in Lake Murvaul near Carthage, TX? https://tpwd.texas.gov/fishboat/fish/recreational/lakes/murvaul/

Posted on Αύγουστος 26, 2018 1055 ΜΜ by cosmiccat