Are there snakeheads in the Potomac River?

Snakeheads caught in most major Virginia river drainages – Potomac, Rappahannock, York and now James Rivers, and many reservoirs: Northern Snakeheads were discovered in Virginia in 2004 and may be found in the Potomac River almost anywhere – from above Great Falls downstream to Chesapeake Bay.

What time of year do snakeheads spawn?

In the U.S., northern snakehead spawning has been observed to start by the end of April, peak in June, and continue through August (Gascho et al. 2011). Adult females build circular floating nests from clipped aquatic plants and release their pelagic, nonadhesive, buoyant eggs on top (Gascho Landis and Lapointe 2010).

What is the Maryland state record snakehead?

19.9 pounds
Fox’s snakehead was officially weighed and certified by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and Gray Brothers Market. The record-breaking northern snakehead tipped the scales at 19.9 pounds with a length of 35.157 inches, breaking the 2-year-old record of Dutch Baldwin’s 18.42 pound catch in May 2016.

What do you do if you find a snakehead fish?

If you capture a snakehead fish:

1. Do not release the fish or throw it up on the bank (it could wriggle back into the water).
2. Kill the fish by freezing it or putting it on ice for an extended length of time.
3. Photograph the fish if you have access to a camera so the species of snakehead fish can be positively identified.

Can you catch snakeheads year round?

Snakeheads can be caught on both lures and live bait. As a general rule of thumb lures tend to be more effective during the warmer months of the year and bait works best during the cooler months of the year.

How many times do snakehead Spawn?

They can spawn up to five times, each time laying more than a thousand orange-yellow eggs, which are buoyant. Sometimes they can lay many more, however, approaching 50,000 eggs per year. Snakeheads often make floating nests made of bits of vegetation to protect their eggs.

What is the biggest snakehead ever caught?

Zainal’s Giant Snakehead Malaysian angler Faizal Zainal potentially broke the All-Tackle World Record for giant snakehead (Channa micropeltes) with this massive 13.6-kilogram (30-pound) fish that he caught-and-released on February 28, 2018 while fishing outside of Rawang, Malaysia.

How big can snakehead get?

The northern snakehead’s elongated body grows to 33 inches in length. It has tan, dark brown or black coloring with a mottled, snake-like pattern. Its long dorsal fin runs along most of its back. It has a large mouth with a protruding lower jaw and many teeth.

Are there snakehead fish in the Potomac River?

It’s been over a decade since snakehead fish turned up in the Potomac River, and the population has expanded in Virginia to several other tributaries to the Chesapeake Bay. Using data from surveys, angler reports, and commercial fishers, we have a distribution map of snakehead fish in Virginia.

How do I report snakehead fish in Virginia?

Any unusual fish needs to be reported to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. We have established a snakehead hotline that anglers can use to report snakehead fish (804-367-2925). There is also a new, easy-to-use web application for reporting observations.

Are snakeheads destroying Maryland’s native fish?

Unfortunately, recent research conducted in the Blackwater and Little Blackwater Rivers in Maryland suggest that snakeheads are driving down the population size and biomass of native fish species.

Where can I find Northern snakeheads?

Northern Snakeheads were discovered in Virginia in 2004 and may be found in the Potomac River almost anywhere – from above Great Falls downstream to Chesapeake Bay.