Blane Chocklett, Fly Fisherman, March 15, 2021
The ancient megafish of North America need a spotlight and our respect of valuable gamefish. Bowfins, paddlefish, gar, and sturgeons are all aquatic dinosaurs—megafish that have gone mostly overlooked or ignored by fly fishers. I call them “the forgotten ones.” Their aggressive eats and acrobatic leaps can beat or at least equal any gamefish on the planet, and they can change the way you look at your home waters.
Unfortunately, all these nearly forgotten fish are facing an uphill battle as their habitat is being depleted in the name of progress. Dams and diversions have damaged many of their natal spawning areas. Many of them are extinct in parts of their native ranges because they are cut off by dams. Due to their large size, they are subject to overharvest by both legal means and by poaching.
When they are close to spawning, peacock-colored bowfins rival any autumn brook trout. Bowfins are native to the eastern United States from Upstate New York all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. Jay Nichols