Stone cats

[1brookie]

Does anyone know where you can get stone Cats in or around the Lancaster area? We use them on the upper Susquehanna but I can't find them down here. 

[fastribs85]

what exactly are they so iknow and what do you use them for

[reubenpa]

stone cats are little catfish about 3-4 inches I beleive and smallies and other fish love them...  They live under rocks I beleive.  a friend of mine from north of H-burg got them from a stream near allentown

I have never used them as I have never seen them and didn't know where to get them.  I have heard that most streams around that area have a few, but are hard to getI have no idea. 

[seaweed01]

They should be in some of the small streams that enter the Susky in that area.

[fastribs85]

anybody have a picture

[Jigwiggler]

No pics but they look like a little brown bullhead with blue eyes.  They are awesome bait and can be difficult to find.  Look in shallow, swift water areas for best results.

[bayonne]

some steams have loads of them and some dont in v.a the north fork of the shan. has good numbers and the locals call them mad toms and they are great big cats love them also you might find it easyer to find helgramites and thier a hard bait to beat smallies and every thing else in rivers love them

[fastribs85]

how do they work for largemouth and crapie and anybody know where i can find some in the philly area or in the bloomsburg area fish both as much as i can

[1brookie]

Don't konow about the Philly area but any little feeder to the Susky
up atound Bloomsburg should have them. I've tryed a couple of small
streams in the Lancaster are and so far no luck, I'm going over the the route 30 bridge in Columbia one day next week and give it a try right in rhe Susky.

[fastribs85]

thanks ill look before i go fishing in a couple weeks

[suskymusky]

You can find stone catties in riffle sections or the river or in small streams.I like to mug them.Look for a rock that is plate sized.Barely lift the back of the rock and slowly cup your hands around the sides, feeling for stone catties.If you find one slowly cup your hand around it and pin it to the top of the rock.Try to wrap your hand around it or lift the whole rock out of the water.This takes some practice.Go nice and slow and you won't get stung.You can also net them after dark when they come out from under the rocks.They are my favorite bait in the Susquehanna, and produce when nothing else will.

[suskymusky]

here is a photo of a stonecattie http://www.nanfa.org/NANFAregions/sc/sc0602/madtom.jpg

[camo_fish]

some steams have loads of them and some dont in v.a the north fork of the shan. has good numbers and the locals call them mad toms and they are great big cats love them also you might find it easyer to find helgramites and thier a hard bait to beat smallies and every thing else in rivers love them

Yea, man, I love using madtoms for big bass and cats on the Shan. river in the luray area. We sain our on helgramites and madtoms.
For madtoms we make a homemade net.
Take a clothes hanger and shape it into a circle or oval, big enough for a stretched out black dress sock to fit around and take the extra hanger and loop it back down to make a handle.
Then get in the river and start turning over rocks with the black sock down next to the rock. If there is a madtom under the rock and the light hits him, he'll look for the next dark hole to run to, hoping that he heads into your sock, and then throw'em in your bucket.