Barbs and Backlashes

A couple of weeks ago I shared a story with you about a largemouth bass caught recently by the son of one of my co-workers, It Is a Fish Eat Rat World.  That fish had consumed a kangaroo rat not long before being caught.  Recently, there has been another picture making the rounds on the internet, I was pointed to it on the Ice Team FaceBook page. This time the fish was another top-of-the-food-chain, apex predator, and one of my favorite fish, …

You probably are not going to see or hear anything about this, probably not going to be parades and news conferences like there should be, but tomorrow, September 26, 2015 is National Hunting and Fishing Day!  Governor Ricketts signed the proclamation! So. . . what does that mean?  This will give you a little bit of an idea. . . . Here is why it is worth a proclamation! You have probably heard me say that hunters, anglers and trappers …

In recent months I have highlighted at least a couple of national publications or organizations that have mentioned some of the excellent fishing opportunities we have in Nebraska (e.g. McConaughy Makes Top 10!, Nebraska Waters Make Top 100!).  I was surfing the web recently and found another one! 10 Top Trophy Bluegill Destinations That title caught my eye, and I had to read the entire article.  If you are talking trophy bluegills, fish that honest-to-goodness weigh in excess of 1 …

My blog is all about the fish most of the time.  As such you can count on my calling attention to the current issue of NEBRASKAland magazine and the picture of a cutthroat trout on the front! The cover refers to an excellent story on the inside–Justin Haag’s Pine Ridge Streaming.  Be sure to check it out on pages 52-57!  Justin’s story highlights some of the trout fishing opportunities that can be found in Nebraska’s great Pine Ridge region.  In addition …

The weather has been relatively hot in Nebraska the past couple of weeks, but the calendar says it is fall.  The calendar is not wrong.  The fall bite has started and I have been trying to spend as much time on the water as possible the past several weeks.  Some evenings, as I stand in the water waiting for a big fish, my mind wanders back to autumns past, of fish caught and memories made. I guess I am old enough …

Time for a state record update.  This is the time of year when we see the most activity in the spear-fishing and bowfishing state record categories.  I have a few bowfishing updates to share with you. . . . Hybrid Sunfish The first one is a hybrid sunfish, a green sunfish X bluegill hybrid that was taken on July 1 by Zachary Welch of Ainsworth.  Zachary found his 14.4 ounce, 10-inch hybrid sunfish in a private sandpit in Brown County. …

If you were watching, there was a very positive announcement on the water front last week:  State entities working on first-of-its-kind water sustainability plan Historic agreement to ensure lasting uses of Niobrara River for Nebraskans LINCOLN, NEB. – A historic agreement has been negotiated to preserve the future of the Niobrara River Basin between the Niobrara basin’s Natural Resource Districts (NRDs), the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission (Commission) and the Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD). Formal action on a memorandum …

I was surfing around on Rapala USA’s FaceBook page and saw that someone likes #9 Shallow Shad Raps so well he got a tattoo of one on his arm: If you have been reading my blog for awhile, you know that I love Rapala crankbaits.  The #9 Shallow Shad Rap is a very good choice, I have caught a ton of fish on that bait. However, if I was going to get a tattoo of that bait, it would have …

It is that time of year again, time for our annual review of fishing rules and regulations.  This is an ongoing process that involves many different folks on many different levels here at the Nebraska Game & Parks Commission.  Typically, the October commission meeting is the one where changes in fishing rules and regulations are discussed.  We do not have a lot of time to meet deadlines before that meeting, but we want to give our anglers and idea of …

I do not like it when folks give human attributes to fish and game, but I imagine if there was ever a working man’s fish, a real roll up it’s sleeves and go to work, sweaty, dirty, “Get -R-Done” kind of fish, it would be a black bullhead.  So, why not celebrate Labor Day by doing a little bullhead fishing? Stocked Bullheads Provide More Late-Summer Fishing Opportunities LINCOLN – There is still time to take children fishing for stocked bullheads …