Not that kind of hunting...
Had a cool experience participating in the Atlas Environmental Spring Polespear tournament. The semiannual tournament targets Plecostomus (suckermouth cats) and tilapia as well as several snail species in the San Marcos River. Every tournament ends with an awards ceremony complete with live music and free fish tacos!
No it’s not legal to spear here. Yes we had TPWD permission. A total of 240 pounds of invasive biomass removed this go-around. Over one ton total to-date. That’s a lot, considering the majority of the fish are in the 4-12 oz range and we’re working a 1.5mi stretch of river through campus.
You think hardheads are mean? You should meet their cousins. Armored scales, sharp spines, and sandpaper skin. They eat algae from my understanding. No predators. No competition for resources. It’s no wonder this invasive thrives just about everywhere on earth.
In my 1900-2359 time slot, I managed to bag 7 “plecos” as well as a few cichlids (oops). In my defense, I don’t hunt freshwater often and thought they were baby tilapia *face palm*
Turns out fish react to a flashlight similar to deer on the road. In the calm pools, I could swim up to a “sleeping” fish and gently cradle it in my palm before it would swim off lazily. I remember thinking “I wish all these freshwater anglers could see this.” Bluegill, redbreasts, bass, etc would swim inches from my mask, investigating.
I learned that bass are pretty territorial. They make dens in the grass and if you approach, they will defend. I got a little too close to a 5+ pounder. She rushed me before I even realized what was happening. I flinched and instinctively turned my head to protect my face. (Remember I’m laying at the bottom of 10’ river, crawling through a forest of grass, in RIPPING current, at 10PM, nearing the end of my breath hold. In other words, in her world. Not mine). When I turned, I felt a pretty good jab on my polespear. She was coming at me with some force! When the dust settled, she was gone.
Despite the “deer in the headlights” effect on non targeted species, the hunt was tough. The plecos prefer rocky areas to suck algae off of. I’d find them on the rock/grass boundary or under a rock in the heaviest current. Notice my toes peeking out of my booties in the stringer pic. Tore them trying to anchor myself to the bottom.
A single fish often took 10+ dives to retrieve from under a large rock. 1) spot the eye shine. 2) Find a way to get a rigid spear up/around rocks to stick your target Even if it takes several dives to move some rocks to clear a “shooting lane”. 3) gently retrieve your spear up/around the same obstructions (in reverse) while not allowing the fish to fall off. All this while holding my breath and laying on my belly on top of the rock, peering underneath like a child checking under the bed for monsters.
Even if the fish was spotted simply laying on the bottom, the forest of grass made it tough to get a shot off. Even if my speartip was free, the grass would grab onto my band, preventing it from releasing fully. The stuff was strong. In a ripping current, I could grab hold of a few strands to anchor myself. (Killed my breath hold, though).
Not much “real” diving but it was a cool way to stick some fish before the warmth of fishing season. Also, I managed to gain permission to do some more cleanup in nearby lakes. I hear these plecos get up to 5lb in Landa and that one could expect to take a cooler full of tilapia home any day. May make a trip before next months trip to SPI to chase some snapper and AJ.
Sorry for the long-winded write up.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Had a cool experience participating in the Atlas Environmental Spring Polespear tournament. The semiannual tournament targets Plecostomus (suckermouth cats) and tilapia as well as several snail species in the San Marcos River. Every tournament ends with an awards ceremony complete with live music and free fish tacos!
No it’s not legal to spear here. Yes we had TPWD permission. A total of 240 pounds of invasive biomass removed this go-around. Over one ton total to-date. That’s a lot, considering the majority of the fish are in the 4-12 oz range and we’re working a 1.5mi stretch of river through campus.
You think hardheads are mean? You should meet their cousins. Armored scales, sharp spines, and sandpaper skin. They eat algae from my understanding. No predators. No competition for resources. It’s no wonder this invasive thrives just about everywhere on earth.
In my 1900-2359 time slot, I managed to bag 7 “plecos” as well as a few cichlids (oops). In my defense, I don’t hunt freshwater often and thought they were baby tilapia *face palm*
Turns out fish react to a flashlight similar to deer on the road. In the calm pools, I could swim up to a “sleeping” fish and gently cradle it in my palm before it would swim off lazily. I remember thinking “I wish all these freshwater anglers could see this.” Bluegill, redbreasts, bass, etc would swim inches from my mask, investigating.
I learned that bass are pretty territorial. They make dens in the grass and if you approach, they will defend. I got a little too close to a 5+ pounder. She rushed me before I even realized what was happening. I flinched and instinctively turned my head to protect my face. (Remember I’m laying at the bottom of 10’ river, crawling through a forest of grass, in RIPPING current, at 10PM, nearing the end of my breath hold. In other words, in her world. Not mine). When I turned, I felt a pretty good jab on my polespear. She was coming at me with some force! When the dust settled, she was gone.
Despite the “deer in the headlights” effect on non targeted species, the hunt was tough. The plecos prefer rocky areas to suck algae off of. I’d find them on the rock/grass boundary or under a rock in the heaviest current. Notice my toes peeking out of my booties in the stringer pic. Tore them trying to anchor myself to the bottom.
A single fish often took 10+ dives to retrieve from under a large rock. 1) spot the eye shine. 2) Find a way to get a rigid spear up/around rocks to stick your target Even if it takes several dives to move some rocks to clear a “shooting lane”. 3) gently retrieve your spear up/around the same obstructions (in reverse) while not allowing the fish to fall off. All this while holding my breath and laying on my belly on top of the rock, peering underneath like a child checking under the bed for monsters.
Even if the fish was spotted simply laying on the bottom, the forest of grass made it tough to get a shot off. Even if my speartip was free, the grass would grab onto my band, preventing it from releasing fully. The stuff was strong. In a ripping current, I could grab hold of a few strands to anchor myself. (Killed my breath hold, though).
Not much “real” diving but it was a cool way to stick some fish before the warmth of fishing season. Also, I managed to gain permission to do some more cleanup in nearby lakes. I hear these plecos get up to 5lb in Landa and that one could expect to take a cooler full of tilapia home any day. May make a trip before next months trip to SPI to chase some snapper and AJ.
Sorry for the long-winded write up.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Shoot me a PM if you ever want to make a day trip.
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