Do baby Asian Carp often jump in the evenings?

[CaptObvious]

Follow up to previous post. Yesterday evening while fishing in Blood river (Ky lake) I noticed the Shad popcorning at a well known spot I fish. I observed a good number at first and with this thread in mind I decided to see exactly what they were doing. There is a hatch of small winged insect and as they flew here and there to touch their tail in the water to lay eggs, the Shad would ambush them. It seemed as if they would track the path of the insect and then leap out of the water with precise aim and have a meal. Several times as I paused my tube to watch I would get a hit on my tube and up comes a smallmouth or largemouth. No drum yet. I also observed a very small insect flying about and they too were attacked. The Shad would really intensify their forage when the wind would subside and calm water ensued. I have drank my coffee and now I have to put on some warm clothes to see if I can have a good morning fishing. I know I will irreregardless of how many I catch. The sun will come up and apply warmth as I sit and take in my surroundings. It will be a good day.

[crappiepappy]

I don't think Gizzard or Threadfin Shad eat "bugs", as they are both phytoplankton/algae eaters. Skipjack Herring, Mosquitofish, and the various Silversides minnows do eat insects & emerging larvae.

I observed many schools of "shad" on Taylorsville lake, swimming along the surface, back a few weeks ago. As I was moving from one spot to another, I found out that some of those schools of "shad" were in fact actually schools of large Silversides. In my experience, the Silversides are the only ones that leap out of the water after flying insects (mosquitos, gnats, midges, etc.)

I can also tell you from experience, that you most likely won't catch Silversides with a cast net (even a 1/4" mesh) ... but will have to use a net with a wire window screen basket, at night, with a light hanging over the side of the boat & slowly moving along the bank. At least that's the only way I've ever seen it done or personally done it. I can also tell you that a Silverside will outfish a live minnow ... even if that Silverside is recently deceased and/or cut in half ... when used to catch Crappie.

... pappy

[CaptObvious]

Thanks pappy. I just got educated. Now I know. Didn't see any this morning but did see a few brown fish and LMB in the boat.

[SLP]

OK I just came back after fishing Barkley again for a couple days and I tried my best to look at their shape and I believe kyriverblues may be right. Prior to leaving this time I looked up pictures of Brook Silversides and these weren't thin pencil shaped like the Silversides are. And since crappiepappy educated us to where even though the right size and shape they likely aren't Gizzard or Threadfin Shad I think kyriverblues assumption sounds like a winner.

Hey sounds like to me they might be baby skipjack. They will jump out of the water feeding often. They also look similar to Asian carp when they are small.

Maybe I will just say that they are baby Skipjack that are "popcorning" The description of their behavior is still a good one regardless of the species.

Thanks again everyone

[CaptObvious]

Thanks SLP. they were still popcorning strong last week on Blood river. I even had the unpleasant privilege of catching a few of the parents while fishing. Drum I expect but not 15 inch skip jack. I reckon if I wanted to catfish they would've been a good bait all cut up and sautéed. I've caught them before but rarely. I'm trying to talk myself into going back the first week of November to Blood or Dale Hollow. Hmmmmm, such decisions

[crappiepappy]

Drum I expect but not 15 inch skip jack.

Capt O ... Them's Tennessee Tarpon !! LOL !! I've caught them from Watts Bar Lake (E. Tenn) on minnows, jigs, and cranks ... in the distant past.

This past April a 21+ inch 4lb plus Skipjack was caught at Watts Bar. Watts Bar is on the Tenn River chain of lakes, which "ends" with KY Lake, and since Barkley is connected ... they have them too.

Since they eat minnows & young Gizzard Shad .... let's hope they develop a taste for Asian Carp !!!!

... pappy

[SLP]

LOL, those Drum always fake me out and at first I think I have a really nice Lg mouth.

My first afternoon out this past trip it happened again. They are still fun to catch though since I just enjoy any fishing but I'm always a little disappointed when I see it's a Drum on the end of the line. Anyone know if they are OK to eat? They look like something you wouldn't eat but I really have no idea.

[crappiepappy]

LOL, those Drum always fake me out and at first I think I have a really nice Lg mouth.

My first afternoon out this past trip it happened again. They are still fun to catch though since I just enjoy any fishing but I'm always a little disappointed when I see it's a Drum on the end of the line. Anyone know if they are OK to eat? They look like something you wouldn't eat but I really have no idea.

I've eaten them (as a teen) and they came out of the KY River (Tate's Creek Ferry area) ... and I'm still alive to tell the tale !!

Seriously though ... yes, they're edible. They just don't have the greatest taste (kinda fishy) and are one of the fish listed in the state's Consumption Advisory for containing Mercury.

And you think YOU are "faked out" when a Drum hits your Bass bait ... what do you think I feel like when one hits my Crappie jig on 4-6lb line and an UL rod or 14' spider rigging rod ?? !!! LOL !!

... pappy

[CaptObvious]

Ah yes, the ol drum fake out. It's late in the evening, bass has been hitting pretty good. You figure you got another half hour to fish before stowing the trolling motor and firing up the big motor to head in. Then boom! Alright! Gotta big one! Then you start feeling the fish dig for the bottom. Drum! It's a 10-12 pounder. You finally get him to the boat. I don't want that smelly thing in my boat stinking it up and flipping and flopping everywhere. I reach over the gunnel with pliers to get a hold of the hook and just as I get a hold of the hook, it comes alive. I bend my hook, tear my jig or whatever. Time to tie on new bait, retie if he didn't ruin the hook. 25 minutes left. Good, a few more cast. Bam! Guess what? Another one. In Ky lake I catch quit a few of them. When it comes down to it though, im still fishing. The drum gives you another fight on your pole. Im retired and I know the day is going to come soon when I won't feel like going fishing or be able to so I reckon it's all good. I'm still chuckling over the "Tennessee tarpon".

[crappiepappy]

Capt O .... do a Google search for "Tennessee Tarpon" (aka Catfish Candy) LOL !!!

... pappy

[CaptObvious]

Thanks CP. Wow! Tn record 4 pounds. If your just looking for action on a rod, all that jumping and pulling. I reckon ol Tim Farmer even has a recipe for them things! Maybe they use the oil from them to put in WD40

[Moveon]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daphnia

Daphnia are diurnal and rise up towards the surface when it gets darker outside and sink down into the depths with increased sunlight. This rising and sinking happens all the time and coincides with the rising sun and setting sun.

Maybe the smaller fish are chasing these small zoo plankton organisms near the surface and that is what you are seeing.

I have no clue as to what species of fish you are seeing. Without capturing them and giving them a through examination and counting the number of scales along their lateral line or the number of fins on their body or the shape of the mouth or looking to see if there are any teeth on the tongue can one truly identify a fish species. This I leave up to the fishery management guys. I took a course in this while in college but didn't really like memorizing all the Latin Names of all the various fish species at that time. Guess I should have taken Latin in High School instead of Spanish. Many things in science are based on Latin Terms still.