My Grandson James and I went fishing last week, in search of the Snakeheads in Lake Orange. We didn’t hook up with any, but they’re in there. Every week Darrell Kennedy of Angler’s Landing posts pictures (like the one above) of lucky(?) anglers who brought one to the scales. In fact, Snakeheads have become so popular that lots of bass guides, particularly on the Potomac River, are booking guided trips exclusively for Snakeheads.
Northern Snakeheads are often found in the same habitat as largemouth bass, but they especially love vegetation – grassy and mossy shorelines and hydrilla beds. One angler at Lake Orange said he caught one in just a few inches of water, near grass. The strange-looking fish are very aggressive feeders and will attack most any topwater bait, but a grass frog is a favorite.
Snakeheads are prized catches, first because they fight hard. They can back up when hooked and put a serious bend in a fishing rod. They are also highly prized on the dinner table – a delicacy in many Asian countries.
Snakeheads were first discovered in Virginia in 2004 in the Potomac River. The Game Department immediately sought to catch and eliminate this invasive species, but their efforts were in vain. The prolific fish quickly spread and are now established in all the tributaries of the Potomac plus the Rappahannock, York, Shenandoah and James rivers. They have also been found in many reservoirs including Lake Anna, Hunting Run Reservoir, Pelham Reservoir, Abel Reservoir, Burke Lake, Occoquan Reservoir and Lake Orange.
If you catch one you must either let it go or kill it. It is illegal to transfer them, even in a livewell. At first, the Game Department feared that the Snakes would compete and negatively impact largemouth bass, but so far, that’s not been a problem and the Snakes are rapidly becoming a sought-after gamefish.
