Catfish pop up around region

• In a recent conversation with Bill Foreman of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, he noted that 750 channel cats were dropped into the pond and that some of the fish were well above that 18-inch publicized size, which makes them close to four pounds. This is a very good and interesting development for area fishermen.

• Channel catfish are slow-growing species that can live for 25 years. Typically they average two to six pounds, but in time can grow to 20 in the north, while southern fish may hit the 50-pound mark. Channels are different from the white catfish and bullheads that live in this state. Bullheads have dark-chin barbells and almost squared-off tails. White catfish have white-chin barbells and deeply forked tails.
  
• Channel cats have dark-chin barbells, deeply forked tails, speckles on their sides, a goldish hue to their side coloration and a proboscis (sort of nose) that over hangs their lower lip. White catfish have a basic c-shape when viewed from above where the channel cat profile from the same view has a convex shape overhanging the lower jaw that is more pronounced in large specimens.
• Channel catfish are a southern species that has had an established population in the Connecticut River for decades. These original channel cats were, I believe, based on conversations years ago with biologists from Massachusetts, dropdowns from stockings in that state.
• Illegally, anglers have caught and transported these fish randomly into many lakes across the state. The current Connecticut state record -- a giant 29-pound, 6-ounce monster -- was caught by Appleton Barrows while competing in a bass tournament on Mashapaug Lake in 2004. The only way this channel cat could be in Mashapaug is if someone illegally stocked it. There have also been channel cats caught, to my knowledge, in the Thames River below Greenville Dam (small stuff to about three pounds), Mohegan Park Pond a couple years ago when a fisherman caught one of about 19 pounds, and Gorton Pond in Niantic, where a handicapped angler caught a monster of about 21 pounds.
• All of these surprise channel catfish had to be the result of "Johnny Appleseed," anglers who stock species they like into ponds throughout the state. This is not a good practice because it's against the law and biologically wrong. Without the proper biological knowledge, dropping fish any place that is convenient can do more damage than harm.
• This year, Mohegan Park Pond, because of its public accessibility, was designated as an "urban fishing area" by the state, which also designated it as a "trout park." Being a trout park, the fishing rules are different. Anglers are allowed two trout per day, rather than the usual five. The tradeoff is trout parks are stocked more frequently to allow for the heavier angling pressure they may draw. Mohegan Park is a small pond, something like 10 or 15 acres, with almost complete shoreline access. It's a factor that is great for anglers, but tough on the fish, because it puts all of them in jeopardy of eating a hook at any given time.
• The studies my students and I have conducted at Mohegan Park Pond during science classes at Thames River Academy indicate the bass population is not in very good shape at the present time, despite the fact this pond is designated as a bass management area. Our statistics indicate a slight improvement in population structure since 2004. However, catching largemouths in this pond is a challenge.
• Bass management areas -- all of which are listed in the 2007 Connecticut Anglers Guide -- all have special regulations designed to protect their bass populations. At Mohegan Park, the regs are that anglers can't keep a bass less than 16 inches (the statewide limit is a foot) and only a two-fish per-day creel limit (where the state rules in most lakes allow six).
• This bass management designation for Mohegan Park Pond was a result of 10 years worth of data generated by Thames River Academy student efforts who visited DEP Natural Resources Bureau Chief Ed Parker in 2000 with a recommendation for tighter regulations on this body of water. Hopefully, they will have a positive effect over time.
• Our studies also indicate the bluegills in the pond are growing slowly and have increased in abundance over the past couple years since they were decimated by an influx of cormorants four or five years ago. The recent slow growth problem is most likely because of the lack of predation from largemouth bass, which causes over crowding of these fish. Channel catfish feed heavily on bluegills in the south, so their predation will probably help balance the bluegill population.
• Mohegan Park is a jewel in the crown of the Rose City like Central Park is to New York. The City of Norwich owns the core of the woodlands surrounding what is technically named Spaulding Pond, but listed in the Connecticut Anglers Guide as Mohegan Park Pond. The park itself is about 500 acres, with adjacent private woodlands. Combined, these woodlands are a beautiful oasis for the people of Norwich that supports a host of wildlife that includes deer, wild turkey and even an occasional pack of coyotes.
• As a youngster who lived on the perimeter of the park, I spent a great deal of time harassing its then-excellent population of bass, bullheads, catfish and panfish. The kids from Ox Hill Road and myself would ride our bikes to the pond after dinner a couple of times a week, stash the bikes in the brush and cast our baits for catch bullheads and white catfish (up to about five pounds) at dusk when catfish of all species begin feeding.
• Even in those days, Mohegan Park closed at sunset. Even though fishing after dark is the best time to catch catfish and bullheads, anglers must be aware they need to leave when the light disappears in the west. The reason for this city regulation is because, according to a recent conversation with Joel Loyacano (who is an avid fisherman himself) and head of the Norwich Public Utilities Department, there is no way to separate law-abiding fishermen from the vandals who frequently destroy public property after the sun goes down. Bob Sampson Jr. Norwich Bulletin