After The Rain

A Great Fish Story Or What?

Here is the one that didn't get away in Natchez. The blue cat weighed in at 86 pounds. 

Fishermen Larkin Smith, Shane Moak and Devon Pizarras and their 

86-pound blue. (Photo from MDWFP)

A team of three fishermen have a fish story for their grandkids.

The team pulled an 86-pound blue catfish from the Mississippi River at Natchez earlier this week.

They caught the fish using a trotline during the Third Annual Natchez Memorial Day Catfish Tournament, WLBT reports.

The biggest blue caught in the state of Mississippi was a 101-pound fish caught in 1997, also at Natchez.

The biggest catfish caught in the Mississippi River was a 124-pounder caught in 2011 near Alton, Illinois.

The blue catfish record belongs to a Virginia fisherman who caught a 143-pound behemoth at Buggs Island Lake near Clarkesville, Virginia.

Is that a fish story or what?

Roni Mott

2020 Iowa Youth Turkey Hunt

My congratulations to the young hunter in our great wild and wonderful outdoors!

The Big Water!

My daughter, Debra Ann and Granddaughter Lucy, took my two Great Grandsons to the Mississippi Gulf Coast for the very first time and they had a blast.  William David "Will" called it the big water!  Debra said Will and Noah were terrified at first but after about 20 minutes they got used to it and had a good time.  Here are some pictures they shared with me and I wanted you to see the cute pictures that they took.  

William David "Will" Kelly

Noah James Kelly

Granddaughter Lucy and little Noah.

Making memories!

Happy 13th Birthday Tidus!

Wishing my Great Grandson Tidus David a very Happy 13th Birthday today. Tidus is a teenager now and lives in Montana. The last time I saw him he was a year old. I love and miss him so much! Great Gran Gran xoxo

Turkey Hunting 2020

Who Gives A Hoot!!!!

Why?

I see you!

Is this pose good enough?

Get out of my face!

Kissy Kissy

Credits to my Facebook friend Mike Persichini!

Some Pretty Flowers To Brighten Up Your Tuesday!

Hunter Touches Fair Chase Buck During the Rut With His Arrow

A close encounter!  

Five Cited For Shooting Alligators Near Eagle Lake

Agents with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks have issued five summonses to individuals caught shooting at alligators from the levees in the Eagle Lake area, Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace said.

He said the Sheriff's Office has received complaints from residents in the Eagle Lake and backwater areas about people shooting alligators, and sheriff's deputies and Wildlife and Fisheries agents have found dead alligators in the flood areas.

"Every time the river or the backwater comes up, that concentrates wildlife on the levees and other areas in the flood area," Pace said.

He said deputies and wildlife officials are concentrating additional deputies and agents in the area to monitor it.  The deputies, he said, are supporting the Wildlife and Fisheries agents.

Pace said the agents have cited people "for a variety of criminal violations that involve shooting from the levee.  Many of these violations carry substantial fines and the possibility of jail time."

Besides being illegal and detrimental to the wildlife, Pace said, the levee is used by people to access the Eagle Lake Community because a section of Mississippi 465 north of the backwater levee remains flooded.

"We do not need people shooting firearms with that levee being used as the route to Eagle Lake," he said.

The Vicksburg Post

A Northern Snakehead Catch @ Vicksburg, MS

A Vicksburg resident Eli Chapman, 14, shows off the northern snakehead he caught while bow fishing in Steele Bayou recently.  The northern snakehead is rare in Mississippi but has been classified in the state as a non-native invasive species whose live transport is illegal.

Brothers Eli and Bryce Chapman were out fishing in Warren County like they do almost every day when they were alarmed by something slithering through the water near them.  

"I was like what is that thing swimming in the water?  We thought it was a snake," Eli said.

Actually, it turned out to be a snakehead - a northern snakehead, to be precise - which is an unwelcome sight in the Mississippi's waters.

The northern snakehead is often called a "Frankenfish" for its disturbing appearance, sharp teeth and ability to survive on land.  It can spread from one body of water to another by walking short distances on land.  It has no natural predators and is considered an invasive species.

It resembles the native bowfin fish species but has different, darker coloration and fin placement.  Its tail is more fan-shaped than the bowfin's paddle-shaped and had a long fin running underneath its body.

Several cheesy horror movies have been made about the snakehead, but the real threat comes from its potential to destroy the ecosystems of lakes, ponds, and rivers wherever they're introduced.

Snakeheads are native to Asia.  They were first found in the United States in Maryland in 2002, and in the Mississippi in 2017.  Small populations have been reported in 14 states.  An accident at a commercial fish farm in Arkansas in 2008 released snakeheads into the waterways there, and they made their way across the Mississippi River during floods in the ensuing decade.

The snakehead the Chapman brothers caught is the first reported in Warren County, according to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, and marks the farthest south they have been officially reported.

The Chapmans' snakehead encounter occurred in Steele Bayou, a couple hundred yards below the Steele Bayou Contol structure, late on the morning of May 2.  Signs in the area warn anglers to be on the lookout for snakeheads, but this was the first one the brothers had actually seen.

"We were bow fishing in about knee-deep of water.  He came up, and I thought it looked weird, and (Eli) shot him right through the head," 17-year-old Bryce Chapman said.  "I knew they could be in the area and thought it would be really cool if we found one.  But mainly we were fishing for gar and bowfin.  That was a surprise."

Bryce said he wasn't nervous about seeing the odd creature when it swam near.  Snakeheads can grow to be nearly 3 feet long.  The one was a little less than 2 feet and weighed about 4 pounds.  It was far from the biggest aquatic critter Bryce has tangled with lately.

The other day I caught a 50-pound alligator snapping turtle, so I wasn't nervous with a fish.  Some of my friends were scared of it.  They said it'll attack you, it has a reputation for attacking people.  I don't know if that's true.  They're really cool.  They've got some big teeth." Bryce said.

Eli, the younger of the two brothers at 14 years old, quickly speared the fish with his bow and arrow, but it didn't die right away.  True to its terrifying reputation, it remained alive for a few minutes on land before the Chapmans did their civic duty by finishing ii off and reporting it to the MDWFP.

Because snakeheads are a non-native invasive species, fishermen are encouraged to kill them immediately, photograph them, and report the sighting.  Transporting live snakeheads is illegal.  To report a snakehead catch, call the MDWFP at 601-432-2200.

"We shot it in the head, set it down, and it was still walking so we smashed its head," Bryce said.

The Chapmans didn't let the fish go to waste, however.  Thanks to some YouTube videos they found a good recipe and turned the unique specimen into dinner.  Snakeheads are actually considered a food fish in their native Asia.

"I thought it was pretty cool.  I freaked out and was like, 'Oh, It's a snakehead!'  Then we took a picture, killed it immediately, and took it home and ate it.  It was actually really good.  We fried it up with garlic and butter.  We used jalapenos, onions, cilantro, bell peppers," Bryce said.  "I was watching YouTube videos where people eat them, so I think they're edible.  The meat is white and fluffy.  It reminds me of bass meat."

The boys' mother laughed and said she approved of the catch of the day.

"They're quite the little chefs," Renee Chapman said.  The Vicksburg Post

My congratulations to the Chapman brothers on a fine catch of the day in our great wild and wonderful Mississippi outdoors!

Illegal Shootings of Alligators In Warren County, MS

You can’t just shoot alligators or any wildlife out of season... it’s illegal!

That’s why several Warren County teenagers are in trouble. It can also be dangerous to people who live in the community surrounding the creatures.

The Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks and the Warren County Sheriff’s Department received multiple complaints about shooting in a flooded area that lead to citations being handed out to the teens.

Sheriff Martin Pace said, “The word of caution would be for anybody that thinks this is a sport. It’s not. It’s illegal. You can’t shoot this wildlife, whether it’s alligators or other types of wildlife. We have multiple deputy sheriffs working in this area in support of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks as we all work together to try to protect one of our state’s most valuable resources which are our wildlife.”

Pace would not release the teens’ names but he says they could face stiff fines and possible jail time.

The flooding typically causes wildlife to congregate together.

Courtesy of WLBT

Tuesday's Lilies

Some pretty lilies for you to enjoy on this Tuesday, May 12, 2020!

Turkey Stars!

My Facebook friend, Mike Persichini from Michigan took these pictures yesterday of some upcoming turkey stars in our great wild outdoors!

The End!