geneva swamp

Yes you can. I haven't fished there for a few years, but it's been described by some as a hit or miss lake. It has a fish in it known as, I think a "Bowfin" or "Bowfish". A fish dating back to prehistoric times. You'll know it when you catch one, Because you'll say to yourself "What the he!! is this?"

There are tons of bowfin in there...I have caught some nice bass and some real big pike also...Just watch out for the snakes come warmer weather...I stop going there once the weather warms up because you'll spend more time trying to get the snakes out of and off your boat then fishing...

nice to see you joined wade.  this place gets crazy. search "fish pics" grab some popcorn and get ready to have another hernia laughing

ORIGINAL: spoonchucker

thunderpole,

Bowfin are NOT an invasive species, but they ARE a candidate species. As such, anglers are encouraged to release them.

 
Way to go Spoonie !!! I was just going to post the same thing !
 
Thunder Rod, You should do a little research before you start spoutting off information that is not correct

hello mr grant :)P

ORIGINAL: sunfishhunter

Jeb, Cutbait is the way to go for the fins. They will hit live shiners and gills, on most days, but even on the slowest of slow days they always will hit something that is dead and stinky.

are you talking bout catching a gill & cutting it up for bait or something else? also, never saw a bowfin ,what kind (size) of tackle do you use?

jeb tried to pm you some info but your box is full let me know when there is room in it and i will pm you.

Just one more fish in the sea....and yeah, lots in the swamp.
Certain sections of french crick, and Sugar & conneaut lakes...
Here's some info if anyone's interested... http://www.bowfinanglers.com/index.html
The recipes sound killer! Thanks for the link palerydr
*disclaimer* ~ as mentioned bowfin are a 'candidate species' in PA & must be released unharmed.
http://www.fishandboat.com/pafish/fishhtms/chap8.htm

Just to be clear, I have never seen anywording (except for perhaps the quote)suggesting that you Must return bowfin.

the followed in a link to the LAW regarding endangered/threatened/candidate species and the wording is "Encouraged"...

in just about any OTHER waterway I would surely release a bowfin, these are Very rare catches... however the upper french creek and the lakes that at their headwaters clearly seem to be something of an exception.

this fish commission I think did a poor job on the wording on Chapter8.

ORIGINAL: Pork

Just one more fish in the sea....and yeah, lots in the swamp.
Certain sections of french crick, and Sugar & conneaut lakes...
Here's some info if anyone's interested... http://www.bowfinanglers.com/index.html
The recipes sound killer! Thanks for the link palerydr
*disclaimer* ~ as mentioned bowfin are a 'candidate species' in PA & must be released unharmed.
http://www.fishandboat.com/pafish/fishhtms/chap8.htm

Pork,

There are open seasons, and creel limits on some "candidate" species, on some waters. The Bowfin is not one of those species, thus they must be returned.

My pleasure pork.... figured we'd get some interestin posts on this. Them ol boys down in chanty town (geneva) been eatin them critters their whole lives. Fun fish to catch but theyz mean as a snapper and twice as ugly IMO...lol

Thunderpole, you must be thinking of snakehead which kind of looks like bowfin. You are supposed to kill snakehead, but not bowfin.

Question I enjoyed looking through the new Gallery of Fish with descriptions and additional information about the different species of fish in Pennsylvania. I have a question about Chapter 8's fish, Bowfin. I have been fishing Presque Isle Bay for many years and have never caught a Bowfin. On the other hand, we vacation for two weeks every August on Conneaut Lake, and in the last few years although fishing for Bass and Musky -- we caught more Bowfin than any other species. If they weren't so aggressive and hard striking, they would almost be a nuisance. We release all of them. However, two summers ago some of the bait shops in the area were telling people that the Fish and Boat Commission was asking fishermen to kill them when caught because they were crowding out other predatory game fish in the lake. Is this true?

Answer Bowfin are a very unusual and unique fish in Pennsylvania. Your approach to these fish seems just about right.  The Fish and Boat Commission does not suggest that anglers kill them. In fact, bowfin are listed as a "candidate species," which means that anglers are strongly encouraged to return any fish caught to the waters from which they were taken. If any members of the Commission staff made comments about killing bowfin in the past, they were certainly not reflecting the views of our fisheries biologists. In a couple of waters in Northwestern Pennsylvania, bowfin seem to have come on really strong in the past couple of years. This may reflect good reproductive success perhaps brought on by just the right environmental conditions. Just as the PFBC does not advocate waste of bowfins, we do not want them to be released in waters outside the native range of this very unusual fish.
http://www.fishandboat.com/images/pages/qa/fish/bowfin.htm

ORIGINAL: wirenut45

ORIGINAL: sunfishhunter

Jeb, Cutbait is the way to go for the fins. They will hit live shiners and gills, on most days, but even on the slowest of slow days they always will hit something that is dead and stinky.

are you talking bout catching a gill & cutting it up for bait or something else? also, never saw a bowfin ,what kind (size) of tackle do you use?

Here is a pic of a bowfin, a good bait to use is a Double cowgirl like the one in the fishs mouth. The bait is about 10 inches long. Got this one on a figure 8