What happened to my catfish?
- Thread starter bhostasa
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Blue Heron story....
Took the wife and kids to our zoo. There is a deck overlooking a large fish pond that was full of carp. It was about 10' over the water. There is a fish feeder where you can buy the little pellets for a quarter and watch the carp boil the surface when you drop in a handful of feed. Great fun for the kids. I noticed a great blue heron fly up under the deck and land on the retaining wall. So I grabbed a handful of fish food and my oldest daughter and went over and stood on the deck directly over the heron. I told my daughter to "watch this". I dropped the handul of fish food in the water directly in front of the heron. The water starts boiling with carp, the heron gets a wild look in his eye and stabs his head into the water, hesitates for an instance, then is pulled off the ledge and disappears under the water. GONE! Head neck body legs GONE! :shocked: The carp scatter and my daughter and I just look at each other. "Dad, you killed it!" or something like that was said.
A coulpe seconds later the water still boiling the heron appears with a carp about a foot long speared onto its bill. It hops up on the ledge. We run around the deck over to the side so we can see under the deck. The heron shook the carp off its bill and onto the rock rip-rap below the deck. The carp starts flopping back towards the water. The heron picks it up and throws the carp up against a cement wall behind the deck. WHAP!!! Absolutely slams the fish on the wall. Blood goes spraying across the wall. The carp lands on the rocks still flopping. The heron picks it up again and throws it at the wall again. Another spray of blood. My daughter is grimacing and holding her stomach. I can hardly watch it. The wall looks like a crime scene. :confused2: Finally the heron stops spearing and throwing the carp, picks it up, flips it around until it is head first and then attempts to swallow it. The heron's eyes are bugging out of its head. Its throat is buldging three times its normal size. It starts dancing around pointing its bill up in the air trying to swallow that fish. Finally, the fish goes down. The heron goes over to the water and takes some drinks and then just sits there like your granpa after thanksgiving dinner! :laughing:
Took the wife and kids to our zoo. There is a deck overlooking a large fish pond that was full of carp. It was about 10' over the water. There is a fish feeder where you can buy the little pellets for a quarter and watch the carp boil the surface when you drop in a handful of feed. Great fun for the kids. I noticed a great blue heron fly up under the deck and land on the retaining wall. So I grabbed a handful of fish food and my oldest daughter and went over and stood on the deck directly over the heron. I told my daughter to "watch this". I dropped the handul of fish food in the water directly in front of the heron. The water starts boiling with carp, the heron gets a wild look in his eye and stabs his head into the water, hesitates for an instance, then is pulled off the ledge and disappears under the water. GONE! Head neck body legs GONE! :shocked: The carp scatter and my daughter and I just look at each other. "Dad, you killed it!" or something like that was said.
A coulpe seconds later the water still boiling the heron appears with a carp about a foot long speared onto its bill. It hops up on the ledge. We run around the deck over to the side so we can see under the deck. The heron shook the carp off its bill and onto the rock rip-rap below the deck. The carp starts flopping back towards the water. The heron picks it up and throws the carp up against a cement wall behind the deck. WHAP!!! Absolutely slams the fish on the wall. Blood goes spraying across the wall. The carp lands on the rocks still flopping. The heron picks it up again and throws it at the wall again. Another spray of blood. My daughter is grimacing and holding her stomach. I can hardly watch it. The wall looks like a crime scene. :confused2: Finally the heron stops spearing and throwing the carp, picks it up, flips it around until it is head first and then attempts to swallow it. The heron's eyes are bugging out of its head. Its throat is buldging three times its normal size. It starts dancing around pointing its bill up in the air trying to swallow that fish. Finally, the fish goes down. The heron goes over to the water and takes some drinks and then just sits there like your granpa after thanksgiving dinner! :laughing:frankc
Bronze Member
I do agree that the wound being on top of the fish is odd for a Snapper attack. But, my family has had our own pond for my whole life, I've re-stocked this pond 5-6 different times in the last 40+ years and have cleaned the snappers out of if the same amount of times.
Once the turtles come back, and start to grow the fish disappear and the process has to start all over again. I have seen a large turtle grab a juvenile Canada Goose and drag it down under the water. Large snappers fear nothing!!!!
Once the turtles come back, and start to grow the fish disappear and the process has to start all over again. I have seen a large turtle grab a juvenile Canada Goose and drag it down under the water. Large snappers fear nothing!!!!
czechsonofagun
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Moss, what a story!
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Yeah. It was something. We talk about every time we get to that part of the zoo. :laughing:
Dargo
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So, why can't we shoot 'em in Indiana? Their thugs! I don't think I've mentioned it here before, but when I was in grade school we had a field trip to Audubon Park in Henderson, KY. Part of the field trip was having the game wardens teach us how to fish etc. I generally wouldn't be that lucky, but I was the first to catch a fish. It was a foot long, or so, catfish. Before I got it to shore a blue heron speared it, flipped it up in the air and swallowed it head first. The problem was that I still was holding the fishing pole with a line hooked in the fish! Talk about a bit of excitement! The stupid heron took to flight and I hung on to the pole for dear life. That stupid bird crashed into the crowd of kids and did all sort of loud croaking and flapping and the game warden grabbed my fishing pole from me but wasn't quite sure what to do.
It didn't turn out too well. The heron tried to fly away again and the warden had to fight with him on the line this time. By then two other wardens had joined in and we were being carted away from the scene. The last I looked the heron looked to be holding his own against the two other wardens! I suppose it's no wonder that even though I have my own lake I don't fish much.
Stupid bird!
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So, why can't we shoot 'em in Indiana? Their thugs! I don't think I've mentioned it here before, but when I was in grade school we had a field trip to Audubon Park in Henderson, KY. Part of the field trip was having the game wardens teach us how to fish etc. I generally wouldn't be that lucky, but I was the first to catch a fish. It was a foot long, or so, catfish. Before I got it to shore a blue heron speared it, flipped it up in the air and swallowed it head first. The problem was that I still was holding the fishing pole with a line hooked in the fish! Talk about a bit of excitement! The stupid heron took to flight and I hung on to the pole for dear life. That stupid bird crashed into the crowd of kids and did all sort of loud croaking and flapping and the game warden grabbed my fishing pole from me but wasn't quite sure what to do.
It didn't turn out too well. The heron tried to fly away again and the warden had to fight with him on the line this time. By then two other wardens had joined in and we were being carted away from the scene. The last I looked the heron looked to be holding his own against the two other wardens! I suppose it's no wonder that even though I have my own lake I don't fish much.
Awesome story! :thumbsup:
Up here on a local lake just across the border in Michigan there is a heron that hangs around all winter next to a creek that doesn't freeze coming out of a lake. He figured out that ice fishermen are a good source of food, so he walks up and stands next to you while you are fishing. I'm talking standing opposite of you looking in the hole, waiting for the fish to come out close. Kinda creepy. Legend has it if you give him your first fish of the day he will move on to the next guy and you will have good luck. All I know is every time I saw that heron I got carded by the game warden! :laughing:
I also have seen several herons sneak up behind ice fishermen and take the fish that are laying on the ice.
I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of that beak, either. Looks like a dagger! :shocked:
mbosma
Member
I've got one for ya...
Several years ago we were fishing a lake in northern Minnesota. It was a quiet morning, not another boat in sight, the loons were playing nearby, fish wern't really biting, a typical morning in the north woods.
We noticed a herron sitting on a dead tree, all hunched over, head hanging low - and a friend looks and says "boy, now doesn't that look like a grumpy bird." I agree and we troll on.
A minute later, the bird takes flight. Swoops out over the lake at 75' altitude and makes a great big arc. About half way back to the shore, he starts to dive towards the group of loons. 50' - 25' - 10', then it happens. He pulls level and starts to crap. Phlat/tat/tat/tat/tat... An explosive release 30' long and all over the loons. Talk about a precision delivery.
And then, just like nothing happend, he flew back to his perch in the tree.
Several years ago we were fishing a lake in northern Minnesota. It was a quiet morning, not another boat in sight, the loons were playing nearby, fish wern't really biting, a typical morning in the north woods.
We noticed a herron sitting on a dead tree, all hunched over, head hanging low - and a friend looks and says "boy, now doesn't that look like a grumpy bird." I agree and we troll on.
A minute later, the bird takes flight. Swoops out over the lake at 75' altitude and makes a great big arc. About half way back to the shore, he starts to dive towards the group of loons. 50' - 25' - 10', then it happens. He pulls level and starts to crap. Phlat/tat/tat/tat/tat... An explosive release 30' long and all over the loons. Talk about a precision delivery.
And then, just like nothing happend, he flew back to his perch in the tree.
My guess is blue heron also we have them here and if they can wade in they will flat clean you out in no time.
I have heard story's of guys finding bass and carp laying on the ground all chewed up miles from water so its a mystery but herons are what gets blamed and I don't doubt it one bit they are to blame.
Steve
I have heard story's of guys finding bass and carp laying on the ground all chewed up miles from water so its a mystery but herons are what gets blamed and I don't doubt it one bit they are to blame.
Steve
Dargo
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Aww man, that's nasty! And to think I've been blaming Fred and Ethel (the Canadian Geese) for doing the dirty to my dock every year. Although the wrong color, some looks like it came from my German Shepherd! Yuck! If a heron got me, protected or not, it's game on brother!
