FS Digest

Why are some freshwater fish specifically targeted?

I always read that bass and trout are popular but what is it about them that cause people to actively seek out? I don't know too much about how to choose what to go after. Could someone give me a rundown of what they hunt for and why?

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by MP9

FS Digest

Fight goood and you don’t need a 300 dollar set up to get them and you can find them just about anywhere and fun to get

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by wildgammer

FS Digest

And somehow this doesn’t stop me from buying the new Abu Garcia Ike rod and Revo STX baitcaster. Hurts to take a 300 setup out to the lake, get skunked, and the guy next to you is hammering them on an ugly stik.

Always forget about it the moment one slams that buzzbait though.

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by DerailusRex

FS Digest

I love that Revo STX, but I told myself no new reels until next year. Luckily, 2020 is right around the corner 😂

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by ONSFishing

FS Digest

Is a $300 setup for sturgeon ?

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by loofa-rigno

FS Digest

I like to go after bluegill. You just need some worms and a hook. Takes a lot to make a meal, but on light tackle they put up a good fight.

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by BigJ0hn369

FS Digest

I think it's mostly because Bass are the largest predatory fish in most parts of the US. They also tend to eat larger food, so you can use fun and interesting lures to target them.

Walleye are prized where they can be caught because they are big and taste amazing.

Trout are targeted often by fly fishermen because they are abundant and large for fish that will eat small lures like flies.

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by Yoda2000675

FS Digest

For some people it’s about the place. I once heard a fly fisherman say, “the reason we catch trout is because they live in beautiful places... if carp lived here then I’d be a carp fisherman” I believe I heard this fly fishing in Yellowstone.

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by nando420

FS Digest

We have carp in some beautiful places here, and my kids love them. They are a great fighter.

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by Mazziemom

FS Digest

Bass fight hard and trout taste good

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by NBA2kLEGEND69

FS Digest

I specialize in two fish

Pike because of their size, predatory nature, and I think they’re cool

Catfish because they’re strong, fight good, are cool, and really yummy

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by KaioZuma

FS Digest

1. Fish that like to eat other fish. Fish that eat algae and plants are difficult to catch unless they're huge, because we can't really offer them what they want, and can't throw a lure pretending to be what they want.

2. People tend to pick fish that give good fights. This tends to mean medium-large in size.

3. Fish that numerous. This tends to mean they can reproduce in a standard lake without specific spawning conditions(Exception: Trout, which require rivers to spawn but are cheap to stock)

4. Fish that are tasty (which is why Trout get a pass on "easy to spawn" and why Catfish get a pass on point #4)

5. Fish that will take a lure - a lot of people aren't happy just soaking bait. This is another big point for bass and trout. Fish that won't (generally) take a lure won't either because they prefer plant-like-matter, or because they have a rock star sense of smell(Catfish).

6. Fish that grow fast - fishing pressure on a lake or river limits the size fish can get. If your lake has nothing but sturgeon(slow growing beast of a fish), very quickly it will only have small sturgeon or no sturgeon.


The more of those boxes a fish fits into, the more likely they are to be pursued.

Carp = #1(because big, not because meat), #2, #3, #6

Bass = #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6

Trout = #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6

Panfish = #1 #3 #4 #5


Now let's take an example of a rarely pursued fish to provide a point of contrast: The Sacramento Blackfish

1 = Nope. Very light bites on very small pieces of bread, need specialized gear to catch them.

2 = Nope. Weak fighters.

3 = Yes.

4 = Nope. Pretty much tiny crappy carp.

5 = Nope.

6 = Yes

Total: 2/6, less than all pursued fish.

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by RandomPantsAppear

FS Digest

Catfish get big and are tasty. They'll also eat damn near anything that stinks, and since you catch them by just soaking bait most of the time, catfishing gives you plenty of time to drink beer.

Bass can be tricky to catch as they want different lures under different conditions. They generally fight pretty good, and the angling is half the fun.

Trout are pretty fish and they taste good.

Bluegill/sunfish are easy to catch, were the first fish many if not most of us ever caught when we were kids, and they fight really hard for their size. They're also pretty tasty, even if it does take a zillion of them to fill a table.

Tilapia are invasive and fall right in between the sunnies and crappie, and are a tasty bycatch that you can't put back in most areas.

Crappie are bigger than sunfish, a little trickier to catch, and are basically little slices of angel food cake with fins.

That covers the fish typically stocked in neighborhood lakes, but I also target a couple species of "trash fish."

Carp are lb for lb the best fight in freshwater and are the #1 sport fish in Europe. They also get big, north of 20lbs even. They're oily and bony, so they're not great on the table, but damn if they're not fun to catch.

Gar are literal dinosaur fish with a mouth full of razor blades and the bane of bass fishermen everywhere. Alligator gar are the biggest freshwater fish in southern waters, often topping 6' in length. Their smaller cousins, the spotted and long nose gar, average 3-4'. I target them because they fight like hell, often jumping out of the water during the fight, look really cool, and although it literally takes a hacksaw and tin snips to get to the meat, they're really tasty fish.

So those are the freshwater fish I target and a little bit of the why. Hope it helps. Happy to answer any follow up questions best I can.

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by mypostingname13

Graywulff Loc: Cortez,Co.

And this MP9 is why this forum is such a great place. If you have a question somebody and usually multiple some bodies have the answer. Thanks to all of you. Awesome responses.

Old Goat Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

For me, it's just something to add to the fun. Pick a target and get after it. It's more satisfying to catch whatever particular species you're after rather than catching a bunch of something you know you can get any time. I just recently got into bass fishing. They're everywhere I fish but outnumbered tremendously by bluegill. It just adds a little challenge and excitement to an already good time being on the water.