Paddlefish licenses are now on sale for the Missouri and Big Sioux River season which starts in February. Iowa DNR Western Iowa Regional Fisheries Supervisor, Chris Larson, says they have 950 resident licenses that will be sold in the first round through December 31st.
Larson says they also have 50 non-resident licenses
Paddlefish are not caught through the traditional fishing method of casting out bait on a hook.
Some areas of the state have been impacted by the drought and then a wet spring, but Larson says not the Missouri River.
Larson says the paddlefish tend to hang out in deeper water in the winter around the wing dikes from Sioux City all the way to the Iowa border. He says they don’t move much in the winter, but they do a lot of traveling when things warm up.
The fish have a big paddle that sticks out in front of their face called a rostrum that they use to help navigate through the water. Larson says it’s a sensory organ to figure out where the little zooplankton they eat might be. You can find out how to get a paddlefish license on the DNR website at www.iowadnr.gov.
