Hotbed for Catfish

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources recently released the 2008 Catfish Fishery Status Report, a summary of the catfish outlook for Illinois waterways. The information, which was produced by biologists from fisheries around the state, is a valuable tool to determine the health of the catfish population in public lakes and rivers.

Not surprisingly, the report concludes many of the lakes in southwestern Illinois are hotbeds for channel, flathead and blue catfish.

"This really is a great area for catfish," said Aaron Lands, an avid catfish angler from Lebanon. "You have the strip pits and the small ponds, then you have the medium- to large-sized lakes. Of course, there's the Mississippi and Kaskaskia Rivers.

"Really, it's all here in our backyard which is pretty unique about the area."

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