Here Kitty kitty...

[Shortlite]

Well, buys and girls, I've finally managed to get a little time on the water, despite a not too great start to the year.

A few weeks back I hit a section of a stream just down the road from my house, to check out some deeper pools. Didn't fish, but saw a lot of rises and swirls in the coloured water. Further recon missions proved they were whiskered wonders, but only saw some 20-30 cm kittens.

A couple days ago I get some time and off we go. Hit a deep pool behind the neighbourhood Sports Club, one of the closer pools. I had limited time, so I went to a bladed spinner, normally a good producer. Fish rising everywhere, but not a sniff. Plastics similarly drew a blank. Minnow plugs, nada! It being such a small stream, I thought the Mira Shad would be too big, so tied on my SX40.

20 minutes later and I was getting really peeved. The water was clearing, and these catfish were mocking me, rising and breathing all over the pool. I took a deep breath and sent the plug for another swim. This time I cranked it down to bottom, then commenced a slow retrieve with plenty of short sharp twitches. This saw the plug swim herky jerky across the pool, swinging with the current, tapping bottom and kicking up silt. Didn't make it halfway back before I was into this little fella.

[Shortlite]

Okay, methinks. One's a fluke. Swim SX40, swim!! 3 more casts, with nary a sniff or follow, then BAM, and my 8lb fluorocarbon leader is in danger in some rocks. This one felt a bit nicer. Some fancy footwork (river water, sand and mud in my shoe, plus a twisted ankle) has me in the clear, and after a couple of runs and frantic head shakes, in comes #2!!

Just a little bigger than the first (which went about 30). This one pretty much doubled it. Close to 60.

[Dror]

They definitely will not win any beauty contests but something different none the less.

Cheers, Dror

[Shortlite]

So after a slow first session, time's up. Seems like everything else wasn't going slowly enough to stay in their faces whilst pumping out the vibrations that normally get them to take a swipe. These stream cats look like a different kettle of fish to their lake an pond brethren.

So day before yesterday I trek down again. Fresh leader, bit of 20lb bite leader, and SX40 ready to go. Hit a different section, and after seeing only a few fish in the Bridge pool, I move. Maybe too bright. The other pool was shaded, so I look for a similar spot, and hit the jackpot a few metres on, at a stone weirpool. Above the weir is a long, slow shaded pool, with overhanging pussy willows (how fitting). Cats rising and swirling everywhere!!

OK, let's go. 1's a fluke, 2's coincidence......

Same retrieve, casting close to the roots and overhangs. Crank it down, twitch it back on a dead slow retrieve.
15 minutes, nothing. Try the deeper pool below the weir. Nothing. Back on top, the cats start going nuts as the wind picks up and the overhanging branches shake. I cast next to a thick clump, crank it down, and manage 3 twitches before the tip thumps down and line peels off.

Oh yeah!!! That's right. 3's a pattern!
A minute later another 50+ slides up the bank.

[Shortlite]

Dror, what an understatement!! These suckers are the ugliest, slimiest critters on fins. They are pretty game on light gear though, and they take lures, so I'll take 'em.

Plus I hadn't wet a line since the last day of November.
Closeup of #3 with the SX40.

[Shortlite]

Tiny eyes, lots of barbels around the mouth, flat heads, eel-like bodies.

Did I mention slimy!! Oh god, worse was yet to come. Continued in the pool, twitching and twitching my way into two more 50+ models, and failing to convert 3 more tentative strikes.

Earlier I'd received a call from Mum, asking what I was up to. the command came to consider the kids at home (dog and cat), so the last 3 went onto a stringer, destination cooking pot.

Now, walking back home, uphill, with about 4 kilos of live, angry, flapping slimewads is not cool! Got back at dusk, facing immediate orders to kill, gut, skin and clean the buggers. Nightmare!! Bottom feeder guts stink to high heaven, and the slime!!! There's something I won't be doing again in a hurry, and I think I'll draw the line at 1 fish.

Now to see if these stream fish will hit a fly....

[lure_muncher]

Sweet work Ted, gotta be happy to finally get into some suckers. How far was this from your house?

[Fisherman#1]

Ugly looking things catfish. Wouldn't be something I eat either, I doubt I could stomach cleaning itBut, they would put up a fight, so definately worth catching, just not keeping.

[luke_H]

thats an impressive peice of fishing, targetting a new species your not familiar with and that arent that agressive towards lures and cracking the code so quickly, well done.
they do look like fun, with thick bodies like that they must have a bit of power behind them.
once again well done and keep it up
cheers
luke

[Shortlite]

Thanks guys.

They do put up a pretty good scrap. Now as far as cracking the code, well, I've had more than a little experience with these fellows, both on lures and bait. Hit into a big one and you'll bloody well know about it. They thrash their heads a lot, and can be hard to get off bottom in deep water. They can also swim backwards, but not very well.

My PB cat is 12 kilos on 10lb mono, caught on bait many years ago in West Africa.

The sharptooth barbel (catfish), Clarias garipienus , also known as the North African catfish, is widely distributed across Africa. Able to live in low oxygenated water, and even survive out of water for hours. They can hibernate in moist mud for months.

The only thing I had to work out was how to put out the correct signals in flowing water. They don't actively chase, rather they slowly forage, felling for stuff, then pouncing on fish, crabs, etc. In still water they'll pick up on the vibes of a spinner fished sink and draw, especially the bigger ones, as they feed a lot on fish. Smaller ones eat more varied stuff, so don't chase stuff as much.

And the slime stinks for days. Guts stink even worse man. I don't care for the taste of them: the 3 I kept were for my dog and cat, plus that river ain't the cleanest bit of water, like most urban streams. Pretty clean considering it's developing Africa though: freshwater crabs are present.

[Piscineidiot]

Ya know, I have a strong stomach, but those things? Ick, dude...I'll pretty much handle/butcher anything that needs to be butchered, but cripes, Ted, those things are like a leech with eyes and barbels...

[yellow door 1]

The only catties I've seen up close are on french fishing dvds and from the sound and smell of things that may be the best vantage point for this particular family.

I love the different species reports - keep em coming

[Marcus Graff]

nice fish, nice but darn ugly
heres a freshwater cobbler the only freshwater cattie over here in the south west