Catching yellow catfish is all about choosing the right spot and bait, and mastering night fishing timing makes it easier to hook fish

Fishing for yellow catfish is a very popular style of freshwater wild fishing. The yellow catfish is also known in various places as huanglading, angci fish, or huanggu fish. It is a bottom-dwelling omnivorous fish with a carnivorous lean, fond of activity near mud, sand, rubble or obstacles on the bottom, mostly hiding in dark places during the day and becoming active only in the evening and at night.

When fishing for yellow catfish, the first thing is to choose the right time and fishing spot. It has an obvious nocturnal habit, so fishing from dusk into the night and at dawn usually works better, and cloudy days or slightly turbid water after rain are also good timing. Fishing spots can be chosen at the edges of aquatic plants, piles of rubble, near bridge piers, and slow-flow areas at water inlets, places with abundant food and hiding cover.

As for bait, yellow catfish has a clear preference for fishy-smelling food. Earthworms are the most classic bait, and heavily fishy baits such as animal innards and small shrimp are also often used. In terms of fishing method, bottom fishing is the main approach. Because it bites fiercely and often swallows the hook quite deep, you can choose a hook with a wider gap, use a slightly heavier line setup, and pause briefly after seeing a bite before lifting the rod, which makes hooking more reliable.

When removing the hook, pay attention to the hard spines on its dorsal and pectoral fins. It is best to use a towel as a pad or use a fish control device to avoid getting pricked. Yellow catfish has delicate flesh and few intermuscular bones, making it very appealing whether for your own eating or as a target fish for angling, which is also the reason yellow catfish fishing has remained popular in wild fishing circles for so long.