[Fish]

What are your opinions on Gobies in Lake Erie?
What do you do when you catch one?

They're good forage for smallies, but they are menacing and I haven't heard much in-depth about them and would like to know.

I know when I was perchfishing I had about a 2 inch gobie on my spreader when I brought it up. Are these guys THAT fierce?

 

[Nut]

What I have been told about them is this. They are an invasive species that is not an asset to the lake. Some of the DNR and wildlife officers tell us to dispatch them as we catch them. So I do. We feed them to the blue herons and gulls etc. So I would kill em all if I could.

 

[Fish]

What I do with them when I catch them is slit the belly and throw them back in for the fish.

I was just amazed at the temperement of catching a "newborn" goby trying to eat a fish I was using as bait that was 3 times his size.

I hear they also eat a lot of eggs also.

 

[WalleyeWiz]

Hey guys, I agree wth you that they are not fun to catch .There were times on perch trips I did last year where minnows were being stolen off the hooks without feeling a bite.I switched over to a real small hook and instanly caught a double header of gobies.On the other hand, with the gobies being settled on all the reefs on the Western Basin it has hepled to keep some walleye on the reefs pretty much all spring and summer long.As long as we had over casted skys or slightly stained water ,we pulled fish on the reefs for most of the summer.One trip that comes to mind was a trip I had Steve Pollick out(the Outdoors writer for the Toledo Blade). We had 3-5 ft waves from a NE wind that had been blowing for 4 days.I head out to west of Green Island where we had been doing really good on a school of walleyes that were in that area.We fished for about an hour with no luck with the water being very dirty.We reeled in and made a run for the reefs.Steve asked why there would be fish on the reefs.I explained to him my theory on the goby and walleye connection.One my first cast I hooked a nice 3 lb walleye on a weapon as my mate netted the fish Steve was shocked at was he saw.On my weapon along with the nightcrawler was a 2 1/2inch gobie that had hit the weapon before the walleye had.During the course of that trip we land 5 other walleye that also had gobies on the hook ahead of the walleyes. Just a little food for thought.
Capt`n Dwayne
WalleyeWiz Guide Service

 

[Nut]

That is great Walleye Wiz that it works for you.

From my vatange point(stuck on land LOL) it isnt fun catching the water varmints. I fish off and around Metzger Marsh pier in the spring and in the fall. I used to catch quite a few yellow perch a few years back. Now instead we catch gobie after gobie and hardly nothing else most of the time there. Just my perspective. LOL