Growth and Harvest of Catfish in Three Alabama Public Lakes

White catfish (lctalurus catus) and channel catfish (I. punctatus) from 3 Alabama Public Fishing Lakes were sampled from 1979-1982 to obtain information on age and growth. Growth rates were found to be relatively uniform between the 2 species. Average first year growth of white and channel catfish was 118 mm and 127 mm, respectively. Creel data collected during a 1-year study period indicated that channel catfish dominated the catch. Seventy-nine percent of the catfish harvested at Chambers County Lake, 95% at Dallas County Lake, and 96% at Monroe County Lake were channel catfish. Although white catfish are apparently self-sustaining in the 3 study lakes investigated, their low harvest rate does not justify purposeful introduction.