# What's with the turtles?



## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

I seem to be catching a lot of turtles with all this river catfishing I've been doing lately. I'm curious to know if this is normal for bottom river fishing or could it be because the river level is so low. Maybe some of you guys with years of experience have an answer or at least a theory about such things. 

Yesterday we caught probably 4 or 5. Today i was by myself and caught 8..about drove me crazy. But I did get a nice mess of channels for my neighbor to enjoy.


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## billyb (Aug 22, 2012)

I have 3 questions: 
What do you use for bait?
Have you quit mullet fishing? 
Where is Geezer?

My Dad has been sick so I haven't fished much lately. Going to Yellow tomorrow morning to bass fish. Maybe I should catfish.


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

billyb said:


> I have 3 questions:
> What do you use for bait?
> Have you quit mullet fishing?
> Where is Geezer?
> ...



Using shrimp for bait
Haven't quit mullet....just got sidetracked with cats. Mullet snatchers are doing well over here 

Geezer has been real busy, we we will be fishing together one day next week. He hasn't been out is a week or more.


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## billyb (Aug 22, 2012)

I assume frozen shrimp? Winn Dixie used to have shrimp I bought as bait for $4.99 a pound. You just use cut pieces?


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## BananaTom (Feb 16, 2008)

What kind of turtles. I am not a fresh water fisher, so if it is slang for a fish, no need to reply. But if a four legged in a shell type of creature. Please do tell.
Slider
Snapper
Mud
Soft Shell

????

I am a turtle nut.


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

When catfishing from the dock, I catch about 1 turtle for every 6 - 10 cats. I never catch one after dark. If I use a cork I hardly ever catch a turtle. They will eat a worm just as quick as a piece of shrimp. They also like the river better than a hot lake. I have noticed a few more turtles than usual in my area, I think they're like rabbits - some years there just seems to be more


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

Edit


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

~BT~ said:


> What kind of turtles. I am not a fresh water fisher, so if it is slang for a fish, no need to reply. But if a four legged in a shell type of creature. Please do tell.
> Slider
> Snapper
> Mud
> ...



I cared one time and started trying to ID the ones I had and realized there were at least 18 different species and no telling how many subspecies so I gave up. I have one alligator snapper that's head is bigger than my leg and a lot of the little knotty back turtles. Most are soft shells, sliders, or maps. Found a dead musk loggerhead last year but lost his shell in the flood.


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

billyb said:


> I assume frozen shrimp? Winn Dixie used to have shrimp I bought as bait for $4.99 a pound. You just use cut pieces?


Yes, frozen shrimp. They are bait size but large enough to boil and eat. I get two baits from one shrimp.

I don't use the Winn Dixie shrimp. They are too soft. Get mine from a seafood dealer in Freeport that has his own boat. He quick freezes them and they don't stick together. Great for bait that way. Just keep them in the cooler and take 2 or 3 out at a time. What's left over are still half frozen and can refreeze or just fry them up with the evening meal of fish.


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

Try'n Hard said:


> I cared one time and started trying to ID the ones I had and realized there were at least 18 different species and no telling how many subspecies so I gave up. I have one alligator snapper that's head is bigger than my leg and a lot of the little knotty back turtles. Most are soft shells, sliders, or maps. Found a dead musk loggerhead last year but lost his shell in the flood.


You know....I don't know what kind they are but have caught at least 3 different types. One was a big one about 2 feet across the back and it had a flat body . I just knew I had a 6 or 7 pound channel the way it fought and I saw a flipper that I thought was the flash of a big fish. 

I'll start making photos and see about ID'ing some of them.


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

~BT~ said:


> What kind of turtles. I am not a fresh water fisher, so if it is slang for a fish, no need to reply. But if a four legged in a shell type of creature. Please do tell.
> Slider
> Snapper
> Mud
> ...


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## MrFish (Aug 21, 2009)

fishwalton said:


> You know....I don't know what kind they are but have caught at least 3 different types. One was a big one about 2 feet across the back and it had a flat body . I just knew I had a 6 or 7 pound channel the way it fought and I saw a flipper that I thought was the flash of a big fish.
> 
> I'll start making photos and see about ID'ing some of them.


Soft shell? They sure are tasty.


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

Here ya go. This is the link I used. That flat one was most likely a soft shell - they are the ones I seldom see but catch the most 
http://www.outdooralabama.com/turtles


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## sureicanfish (Sep 30, 2007)

Yesterday while catching bait, Tyler pointed to a spot and said I keep getting tore up over there but can't get it on the hook. Of course I said, ha, let me throw over there and catch whatever it is. I set the hook like I was on TV....bout 5 inch long snapping turtle who looked as surprised as I was.


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

MrFish said:


> Soft shell? They sure are tasty.


I'm guessing the big one was a soft shell. It was lighter in color and shaped different than the others.


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

fishwalton said:


> I'm guessing the big one was a soft shell. It was lighter in color and shaped different than the others.




Soft shells shells remind me of a big sand dollar


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## FishWalton (Jul 22, 2010)

Try'n Hard said:


> Soft shells shells remind me of a big sand dollar



Yep, that's what it looked like now that you mentioned a sand dollar. Dang, wish I had kept it now and tried to clean..... I'm not squeamish on cleaning fish or game,, but I didn't like what I saw on YouTube. Maybe I need to look at different techniques if there is such a thing. Have eaten turtle only one time decades ago and I remember it was good.


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

I may just try one (again) myself. The soft shell I ate several years ago was a little slick


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## billyb (Aug 22, 2012)

I have eaten loggerhead and softshell turtles all of my life. About a year ago I caught a big loggerhead and called my Dad to ask if he wanted it. He said yes. I had to put a rope around it's neck and drag it back to the landing because it was too big to get into the boat. I grabbed it by the tail and threw into the back of my truck where it stayed all night. The next morning we cleaned it. This was Saturday.

On Monday I got sick. I thought it was a kidney stone so I called my urologist. After doing a urine sample he gave me 2 shots in the rear and wanted to put me in the hospital. I talked him into letting me go home with antibiotics. On Wednesday he called and said I had Ecoli. He asked me what I had done recently and when I told him about the turtle he was certain that is where it came from. I was flat of my back for 5 days. I don't want no more turtles to eat.


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

Try'n Hard said:


> I may just try one (again) myself. The soft shell I ate several years ago was a little slick




Ughhhhh! Well I been watching people clean turtles on you tube for the last 30 minutes and I may need to take back what I said above! If anybody finds a good video send me a link


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

billyb said:


> I have eaten loggerhead and softshell turtles all of my life. About a year ago I caught a big loggerhead and called my Dad to ask if he wanted it. He said yes. I had to put a rope around it's neck and drag it back to the landing because it was too big to get into the boat. I grabbed it by the tail and threw into the back of my truck where it stayed all night. The next morning we cleaned it. This was Saturday.
> 
> On Monday I got sick. I thought it was a kidney stone so I called my urologist. After doing a urine sample he gave me 2 shots in the rear and wanted to put me in the hospital. I talked him into letting me go home with antibiotics. On Wednesday he called and said I had Ecoli. He asked me what I had done recently and when I told him about the turtle he was certain that is where it came from. I was flat of my back for 5 days. I don't want no more turtles to eat.




Was it dead all night? No. You would have eat that - right? Turtle does seem like it might go bad quick


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## billyb (Aug 22, 2012)

No the turtle was still alive the next morning. It had pooped all in the back of my truck and I guess some of that got on my hands and found its way into my bloodstream. My 87 year old Dad wouldn't cook any of it since it made me so sick. I finally convinced him that cooking it would kill all of the germs. It sure was good and will probably be the last I ever eat.


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## Try'n Hard (Oct 23, 2008)

At 87 I wouldn't eat anything even slightly suspicious!


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## Chapman5011 (Mar 7, 2013)

Turtles gotta eat too.


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