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Quantico Takes on the Frankenfish

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QUANTICO, Va. – A gloomy day took a favorable turn for those participating in the first Snakehead Fishing Tournament at Marine Corps Base Quantico. Shawn Mahood, a Stafford County resident, says he caught a snakehead that he estimates to be 8 or 9 pounds – and it wasn’t giving up without a fight.

“It’s just the biggest, baddest thing out there so that’s what you want to catch,” said Mahood. “It was very feisty. I actually thought he was going to break my line.”

The Marines joined in on the fight against a new invader — the Asian snakehead, a cross between an eel, fish, snake and a piranha that some say threatens the indigenous fish in local waters. Participating groups, individuals and volunteers from the conservation volunteer program, united to celebrate a day of fishing, barbequing and fun in the sun.

However, Mahood, along with many of the other participants and Marines, said that it is the joy of fishing and being outdoors that captured interest, not to eliminate the snakehead completely from the local waters.

“A lot of people think that they’re garbage and want to eradicate them, but I don’t think they’re doing the damage to the ecology that many say that they are,” said Manhood.

Janette Freitas, a resident from Prince William County, says the event was a good idea to promote fishing and enjoying the outdoors. She belonged to one of the winning teams, the “League of Extraordinary Gentlemen”.

“I think it’s interesting that people are so worried about snakeheads when you can come here and fish and see these other species that are native to this area so obviously they’re not killing everything.”

Frankenfish’s bad reputation 

Quantico Maj. Russell Strange said that the snakehead has gotten a bad reputation but because the species is fairly new, not much academic research is available.

“It’s definitely invasive; however, it’s not as bad as people first thought it was,” said Strange. “It can survive almost any brackish waters and that’s the only thing keeping it out of the bay right now. Individuals find that they’re actually great sporting fish and awesome for catching; Many bass fishermen appreciate the fight that these fish put on.”

Over 20 teams as well as individuals participated alongside the Marines to enjoy a day of fishing and other eventful activities taking place the base. June 7 to 9 marks free fishing weekend in Virginia, so fishing licenses were not required to participate. Boats were launched from the Chopawamsic and Quantico creeks beginning at 7 a.m. Saturday and ran until 3 p.m. Snakeheads weren’t the only species being hunted, however. Weigh-in tournament winners were encouraged to reel in Gar, Carp and Catfish as well.

Base Commander Col. David Maxwell, who was in charge of initiating the idea of the tournament, says that he was pleased with the turnout of the event.

“Since [the snakehead] is an invasive species and they’re trying to manage the species here, maybe this is the way to do it and have some fun as well to go along with it,” said Maxwell.

Fishing with bow and arrow

While many anglers used the traditional rod and reel method to capture their fish, many of the fish were actually caught with an archery tackle. The “Ironwoods” team, including Daniel Breeden, from Prince William County and Bobby Breeden, from Stafford County, mostly used bow and arrows to capture their fish, with their weigh-in totaling at 254 pounds.

“From what we’ve seen with the numbers is that they’re here and they’re not going away,” said Strange. “A tournament like this is not going to rid all of the waters of the snakehead; the fish is very adaptable and can live in very shallow waters. The great fear was that everyone thought they were going to eat the ecosystem away.”

Frankenfish on the menu

Recently, however, snakeheads are the ones getting eaten. Many restaurants along the East Coast have begun offering the fish on the menus.

“I’ve eaten them and they are fabulous,” said Strange. Tony & Joes Seafood Place and Nicks Riverside Grill in Georgetown recently offered the so-called “Frankenfish” on their menu as a temporary dish. More restaurants around the Washington D.C. and Annapolis area are continuing to expanding the seafood options to include snakehead.

At the tournament wrap-up, Steve Morris holds the prizewinning snakehead at a whopping 10.18 pounds, just 7 pounds shy of the17-pound, 6-ounce record caught in the Potomac River last week.

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