The last part of April I didn't set the fyke net much as it was raining and I was fairly busy. A couple of notes, it does seem to help to move the net on occasion. After 2-3 settings in the same area I began struggling to catch fish. Secondly, there appears to be a significant increase in catch rate when the trap is baited. I tried throwing canned sweet corn around the net in hopes of attracting carp, but that didn't seem to make a significant difference. What has seemingly worked best for me is putting a handful of fish food in a zip loc bag that has nail holes punched in it to let some scent escape. All in all, I've enjoyed using the fyke net. I haven't caught as many fish as I had hoped for, but I think the work load of catching and cleaning more fish would be too much anyway. And possibly as the water warms and fish movement increases I will begin to capture more.
April total of fish removed: (36 unwanted fish culled and I have started culling a few crappie when I don't catch much of anything else just to feed my larger catfish)
CC - 18 (all under 10")
CGC - 14 (Average of 15")
BH - 4 (Average 10" and very healthy)
Crappie - 2 (9")
Total: 36 unwanted fish culled and I have started culling a few crappie when I don't catch much of anything else just to feed my larger catfish.
May 4, 2016
Removed:
CC - 3 (9")
CGC - 2 (14" and 18")
Released:
Crappie - 3
May 5, 2016
Removed:
Crappie - 3
Released:
GSF - 2 (5-6")
Took a break from trapping to set it in my small pond for small RES.
May 25, 2016 (baited with cans of corn punctured with metal punch)
Removed:
CGC - 2 (14")
Released:
Crappie - 1
Memorial Day Weekend:
Removed: 12 CC between 10-15" length
May totals:
Removed: 15 CC under 18"
4 CGC (disappointing)
3 crappie
Also caught a 22.5" channel cat and caught the first blue catfish that we stocked last fall. It measured 14.25". I've also included a picture of a redear from my small pond below that I thought had extraordinary color.
