What would be the most effective way of catching bullhead cats for complete removal. I catch a few daily by hook. I have a 3ft hoop trap and use chees bait and catch nothing but bluegill in it. Can someone please help me with targeting the bullheads

Complete removal? The only practical way is to renovate the pond - rotenone. Sometimes drawing down the water to low pool will make the task easier, quicker, and less costly. Angling, trapping, seining, and electroshocking will never remove even close to all bullheads. Even with good efforts, expect 10-20% to remain uncaptured.

I can deal with 20% of what's there now. But the numbers I have now are a nuisance.

I would completely kill the pond. Restock and hope the other fish are established before they come back.

I believe the bullheads entered the pond while it was still under construction before the sides were built up. A heavy rain connected the nearby ditches to the pond and I believe thats how the BH and GSF were introduced. I dont see that ever happening again. So far the greenies havent been a problem. And I am able to remove young ones by trapping. But no such luck with the bullheads. But the pond is doing well, The BG and LMB are doing well. But I can only image how much better the pond would be without the unwanted fish. But because my BG are doing so well I am not willing to start over

What kind of LMB population do you have? Any catfish? Perhaps predators can help you.

If you have a LMB population they will eat BH. I have used dog food in traps to catch BH and have very good luck with that. But as everyone is saying you will have to do a complete start over to get rid of them. I don't think you have to, they add to the food chain for LMB and they will control them.

I stocked 75 bass originally by instructions of the hatchery to control the BH and GSF. The bass seemed to grow fast and seemed to put the GSF in check. I dont catch very many of them anymore. When they spawn I trap fingerlings and remove them.
As time went on the bass stopped growing and and were skinny. So I began to remove some bass. The pond seem to be in balance now as far the growth of everything in there. And I do have Channel Cats. 100 were originally stocked. My only concern is BH removal. At one time I was catching 10 a day 7 days a week. Now I catch a few here and there. I hope that means that the population has diminished. And maybe thats the reason I am not catching any in my trap. But I do see them come to feed with the Bluegill

Could you not use trot lines? Sorry, I'm ignorant in these matters...but I catch alot of catfish on trot lines...just my opinion.
My trot line theory is the more the merrier.

I use trot lines, I catch one or two at a time. At one time I was removing more at a time but those numbers have diminished. What do you use as bait. I try everything I have researched as bait. I think bullheads are smarter than they look

Your lack of catching and trapping them is an indication that their numbers are quite a bit lower. With a stong bass population the BH should never be a big problem. Lots of adult fish even BG will eat the BH fry when they are schooling and then when they are less than 2" long.

Thanks Bill, I was thinking that may be the case but wasnt sure. All of you inputs are greatly appreciated

I would have to agree that the numbers are pretty low, as if you had an infestation I think you would catch more, they will hit just about anything. I remember we fish an old muddy pond one time and as soon as your bait would hit the water you had a BH.

The problem with these is that they are such a pain to get off the hook.

Plus I think your traps would be full of them as well.

What size of BH are you catching and could you post some pics of them?

Do you happen to eat BH?

If you search the archives long enough, you can probably find where I had a major infestation of BH in a 17 acre pond. I was catching them on lures and etc. Frustrated big time. Bill or someone here advised that LMB will eventually get them in check and they were right. Don't catch them often anymore and never see the swarms of small ones like used to see.

You can make a tremendous dent in the Bullhead by fishing them out. The only thing that stinks is that it's kind of like work to do it.

I just came from my pond, and at our pier where we hand feed, I arrived and the bullies were the first thing that showed up before I even threw feed. I wished I had a shotgun and multiple shells.

So I had another purpose at my pond (transporting some bluegill to stock a neighborhood retention pond), and convinced myself to fish those hundred or so bullhead out. I could have taken 30 per hour. Too lazy, to a degree.

But again, it's just work.

Thanks, the thing thats been working the fastest for me is jug fishing with worms

I have caught them by throwing just a hook out and reeling it in.