Man it seems like it's been ages since I've had time to sit and write. I
thought I'd take the opportunity, in spite of the laundry list of things I
"should" be doing :)
Due to inclement weather today, we were let go from work a little bit early.
I thought I'd head down and see if I couldn't put a little Stizosteidon
vitreum in mah belly this evening. When checking the USGS stream flow data,
my plans were crushed as the Mighty Muddy Maumee was a foot above flood
stage :( Time for plan B... I figured I could seine up in the streamside
brush and whatnot at a locale I'm very familiar with, and avoid any
compromising situations. Possibly even hook up a bluntnose or two and see
if anything was foraging in back eddys. So on I went to Weir Rapids Access
on the Maumee River.
I haven't seined here before... Seems like it's a high water dream, would
really like to get back there with another brail man and a stomper. Didn't
run into any suckers, which is what I'd hoped to find. However, this is my
favorite place to go for big channel catfish on rod-n-reel during rain
stimulated summer situations, and the catfish theme stuck today as well.
First dip in with the seine and I had a pile of Stonecat and Tadpole Madtoms
(I'd say "handful" but we all know that's just a bad idea ;) I'd only seen
a few Stonecat and a single Tadpole Madtom before in the River. This was
pretty encouraging. The spot held up, there were some in each seine haul,
so it wasn't a fluke. Pretty cool stuff! I tried getting pictures of them,
but my gear and lighting conditions seemed to think otherwise.
Also ran into a pile of Orangespots at all sizes up to 4". Their colors
weren't all that great, but I imagine if I were swimming in 10 mph chocolate
milk, I wouldn't waste energy illuminating my chromatophores either :) Same
song and dance for the darters. I had to look to determine which were
Greenside and which were Johnny. Blah.
Saw a lot of sucker rolling and bobbing in a side area. Looked like big
Quillback. They weren't all that interested in feeding, at least on the
bluntnose minners I was offering. Sometimes after spawn around this time,
they'll start taking jigs and whatnot... But then they pretty much disappear
until a high water situation and you happen upon a juvenile.
Caught an interesting Green Sunfish. Had a pink color to it and the opercle
looked more like an Orangespot's than a Green's (pinkish black and then
pink). Looking in Trautman's Fishes of Ohio, I see that "Opercle membrane
slaty-white, without red but occassionally yellow-tinged". I wonder if it
was a hybrid with the Orangespots? I caught some juveniles that didn't look
quite right either. Prolly should have got a shot, but the camera was far
away and I didn't want to compromise anyone going home to my pond with a
mouth and attitude like that in the collecting basket ;)
Hmm... What else...? Picked up a couple 12" smallmouth that were in trying
to corner minnows. That was kinda fun with them slamming all over in the
seine. It's always exciting to see what that big splash is :)
The ponderance of the day was:
"Are specimens stressed extra when transported home... and a block of Rage
Against the Machine, The Used and Sum 41 happens on the radio, prompting
their captor to crank the radio and scream along?"
Hmmmm....
So.... Here's the fish list. I prolly should start doing all the things I
should be doing ;)
Weir Rapids Access, Maumee River 5/7/03
Bluntnose Minnow
Spotfin Shiner
Emerald Shiner
Logperch
Johnny Darter
Greenside Darter
Channel Catfish
Stonecat Madtom
Tadpole Madtom
Green Sunfish
Orangespot Sunfish
Smallmouth Bass
White Crappie
Common Carp
I hope you know that this will go down on your permanent record.
http://www.farmertodd.com
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