Bowfin

[carpmanjake]

The current record is 11-4. Is it legal to use small bowfin as bait? The reason I ask is a few years ago we had one mixed in with the sucker minows and I used it. Caught my biggest bowfin on it. Had to be 10+.

fishdale- i believe you are talking about mud minnows.

they do look like little bowfin but they are not the same.

an easy way to tell them apart is by the length of the dorsal fin. the mudminnows dorsal fin is alot smaller than a bowfins

mud minnow

bowfin

[Jim Uran]

Nice info!!!

[fishdale]

CARPMAN - Great info - It could have been a mudminow not sure as it was a few years ago. The only reason I remember it was the fact that I thought I caught a bowfin on a Bowfin. But it was probably a mudminow. Great picture of the little Bowfin's.

Thanks for the info.

[onemore]

5 years ago we were fishing in Northwestern Ontario and a kid in a boat near us hooked into an absolute monster! We were all fishing dead smelt in a mild current for Northern Pike. He had a bait caster with heavy line, and had an enormous battle to get the bowfin to the boat. The fish must have been close to 40" in length.

He called is a "ling". It was the biggest bowfin I've ever seen.

[fishdale]

All I could think of after reading this thread is how the discusion would go with a walleye fisherman trying to get the state record bowfin weighed in at a small bait store up north.

Walleye Fisherman = WF

Store clerk = SC

WF) Hey

SC) Hey. What you got in the bag.

WF) I think I got a state record Bowfin

SC) Really? They track state records for Bowfin? Hummmmmm Well lets see it.

WF) Here it is.

SC) That can’t be a state record a caught a bigger one last week fishing for Crappies

WF) The state record is 11-4 and may pocket scale says 12.

SC) Holy ^&^* what is the black fur in its mouth.

WF) It bit the dog.

SC) Is the dog OK?

WF) Yeah I dropped him off at the vet on the way they are going to keep him over night.

SC) You have to get the broken Rapala out of its mouth before we can weigh it.

WF) OK – but I tried for 15 minutes and it is stuck! If I get it out can I return it since I just bought it here this morning for 7.99?

SC) No

WF) ( 10 minutes later WF has the rapala out and his hands are bleeding) OK it is out lets weigh this thing.

SC) Looks like it is 11 – 3 too bad you should have keep it in the life well instead of a bag.

WF) It was in there but it was killing the eye’s.

SC) Maybe you can catch a bigger one. Want a new rapala?

WF) No. Do you have any Band-Aids?