I was pleased to catch this Tilapia yesterday, especially knowing that they begin to die off when the weather gets colder. This fish was 14 inches and weighed just over 3 lbs. I caught it on a nighcrawler. I didn't think that these fish could be caught - but if anyone has bait suggestions I would love to hear them. We eat store bought Tilapia all the time and I was curious if this fish would taste the same or "fishy". It did tast different...it was better! Super white flesh and tender. We like to cook our Tilapia in butter and lemon juice in a saute pan with italian breadcrumbs sprinkled on the top of them. I sure hope I can catch more before they die!

I have seen a couple albinos swimming around that must be 20 inches and 5-6 lbs. Crossbow?

We caught one about a week ago while sampling BG with No. 10 hooks and a pinch of Berkley's CC dough bait.

Haven't eaten one yet, but we will soon.

How big were they when you stocked them and when were they stocked. Im just curious of their growth.

They were stocked in April and were about 1/2 pound a piece

Excellent growth rate Captain1! Is that a blue or a nile? Looks a little like both.

In Texas, I think mozambique tilapia are the only tilapia you can stock without a permit.

That's correct davatsa...Mozambique for Texas. The color of the fish was almost shocking when I first pulled it out of the water with that blue purple lustre. Sure doesn't look like an East Texas native!

The tilapia shown sure doesn't look like a mozambique. It doesn't have the lips or color. It looks like a cross between Male blue and a female nile to me. Also I don't think you'd get that growth out of a moz., but you will easily get that growth from the cross. Moz don't taste as good as the Reds, blues, or niles.

Either way NICE fish!

Tilapia caught N.E. Texas 09-24-08 @ ~3.50 pounds.
Also stocked in April at about 1/2#, maybe from same delivery if from Overton?

Pellet fly, george?

Gulp Grub on the fly ....

Mine were from Boatcycle in East Texas. So...a gulp grub on a fly rod huh? That sounds like fun.

The best bait I have tried for the tilapia was uncooked popcorn shrimp. I thought that the tilapia were vegetarians but I now think that they are opportunistic feeders that will eat whatever they can get. I have always caught more tilapia in November than any other month. Have any of you had the same experiance?

I've tried a lot of different things. Worms worked best but I haven't even tried this year because they just piss me off. The ones that get fed with the bass are hard to catch.

Caught in July 2008....stocked Mar 2008 from Overton, about 4" long then, now almost 3 pounds. We have not eaten any yet, but plan on frying some for Thanksgiving. We have had good luck on nightcrawlers and pieces of raw shrimp. They feed really good on AQMX 600. We live south of Houston, so hopefully most will over-winter.

Captain1...

Have you thought of feeding to bring them in and then getting them with a seine net? Might be worth a try.

Have fun trying to seine for tilapia in a pond not designed for it! Tilapia will lay down flat and dig into the mud to let the seine pass over.

I have to second Rainman's opinion. It sure doesn't have the appearance of a mozambique. I'm no expert though.