bullheads,sculpin

[Ifishforfood]

i was just going to let anyone who fishes in the columbia river, or any clean water know about bullheads(sculpn). these fish are anywhere from 3 to 9 inches, and live in rocky areas, on the bottom. you probably have often time caught them while fishing for other fish, and probably killed them. next time you catch one, dont do so. if you fillet them like a bass, they have clean, white meaty fillets, and are delicous pan fried in flour. to catch them, fish in rocks, no further than 2-3 feet off shore, and jig with small leadheads tipped with worms, grasshoppers, crawdads, shrimp, or any natural bait. they bite year round but best fishing is in mid march through mid december. take some kids out, and i guarentee you will have fun!!

 

[beaverfan]

I've always had my best luck for Bullheads in about 15-20ft of water with a muddy bottom. I have caught other Sculpin species in close but never got a Bullhead that way. Also I just use a small piece of worm or hot dog and plunk it instead of jigging it. I like how you say please don't kill them and then immediately tell us how to prepare them. LOL Welcome to the site.

 

[Hawk]

I've seen bullheads in ponds where they have had a chance to grow to about 20"

 

[Ifishforfood]

i meant dont kill them so i can get more to eat! i think
you guys are thinking of bullhead catfish. im talking about sculpin, the ones that look like small ling cod.the only way to get decent numbers of them is jigging, because they are very aggressive fish. most people dont realise how tasty they are, because theyre so ugly. thanks for the welcome, this is a great site!

 

[mgdguy]

We would fish for them as kids with dad during summer vacation up at Sequim Bay. Brings back memories

 

[TTFishon]

All the one's I've ever caught have been too small to eat. It has been years since I have caught one too.

 

[beaverfan]

i meant dont kill them so i can get more to eat! i think
you guys are thinking of bullhead catfish. im talking about sculpin, the ones that look like small ling cod.the only way to get decent numbers of them is jigging, because they are very aggressive fish. most people dont realise how tasty they are, because theyre so ugly. thanks for the welcome, this is a great site!

I'm pretty sure that what everyone around here calls Bullhead Catfish is actually in the Sculpin family not the Catfish family?

 

[Hawk]

I've caught what i call Bullhead Catfish in many different freshwater ponds, lakes around Oregon & most other states of Our Great Country i've lived in or visited. They have whiskers & spikes on the side of their mouth. Normally a smaller species of catfish.



I've caught Sculpin in the saltwater Pacific Ocean. They have bony spikes by their head.

 

[TTFishon]

I think there are 2 kinds of bullhead catfish in the catfish family. The brown bullhead and the yellow bullhead. They do not look like a sculpin at all.

 

[BlackBass]

Noting the time this thread was started ''4:21" that might have something to do with it . We call them pogie's around here, there a fresh water sculpin that has adapted to life in freshwater originating from salt water environments. I have never heard of eating them but if you say they taste good ill take your word for it

 

[Ifishforfood]

sculpin

sculpin

im talking about sculpin, not catfish. ive caught bullhead catfish, but im not talking those. i catch sculpin in the columbia river, but all the locals call them bullheads. the only way to catch them in sufficient numbers is jigging, but you can catch them on the bottom occasionally.

 

[Ifishforfood]

im 14 by the way.

 

[TTFishon]

I used to catch them all the time when I fished the Long Tom River but they were always way too small to eat. The locals around here called them bullheads too but I knew the difference. Never thought about eating em though only because of their size. What's the biggest sculpin you've caught?

 

[Ifishforfood]

my biggest sculpin was 9 1/2 inches. in the columbia they gey to pretty good sizes. the average size is usually 6 1/2 to 7 inches though.

 

[TTFishon]

Wow! 9 and a half inches is pretty big.

 

[halibuthitman]

im 14 by the way.

well, kinda young to be smokin the green don't ya think? it would be impossible for anyone who caught both a sculpin and a real bull head in their life to mistake them for each other... if you do have a hard time telling... NEVER go salmon fishing! welcome to the site, its good to have more young fisher persons around. Good luck on the pogi poling.

 

[Moe]

im 14 by the way.

Me too!! By the way, I have caught plenty sculpins in the Sandy by jigging a garden worm around rocks that look like a fish can swim under it. But they are all small there. By the way, a tip, when you have one hooked, sometimes they arent hooked, they are like lingcod, they just hold onto the bait until you pull it to the surface then let go. A good idea wood be to take one of those nets you wood use to grab your pet fish in an aquarium as a landing net for sculpin.

 

[Ifishforfood]

thats true with the sculpin. they look, and behave exactly like a lingcod, and they oftentimes fall off right as they hit the bank. that kind of is good though, because a barb hooked sculpin is a real pain. the aqarium nets would work for the smaller ones, but the ones in the columbia are a bit to big though. thanks for the tip.

 

[Moe]

Which area do you fish for them on the columbia, and do you look for a specific area that is good for sculpin, or are they every where?

 

[Ifishforfood]

i fish the rocky areas with 2-3 feet of rocks sloping into deep water. i fish the columbia between 138 and sandy, and where the bike path ends near the house boats, to the right. you can catch them almost anywhere, but the areas i mentioned above are the best. im probably going sculpin fishing this saturday. i will tell you how it goes.