march, 1968 - Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission

HERE'S a dandy for the pan.
SPRING
SUCKER
SEASON
AFTER A LONG WINTER'S PAUSE in streamside activities
it's good to get outdoors in late February or March
when the first hint of warmer weather is in the air. Already
traces of spring are to be found. Furry catkins of pussy
willows are beginning to unfold. Flocks of geese are seen
winging northward. Spathes of early skunk cabbage poke
through leaf mulch in marshes. But the foremost harbinger
of spring, one that coincides with the strong urge
to unwind fishing gear, is the crowd of anglers lining river
banks everywhere in Pennsylvania. The last chunk of ice
barely pushes from shore when early-bird fishermen move
in to catch suckers. These early fishermen find fish hungry
and have little trouble hauling in big strings of suckers.
You may know blubber-lips as the May sucker, or white
sucker, or by another name such as buffalofish, quillback
or just plain 'ole sucker.' Whatever the handle, this family
comprises a large number of fresh water fish which are
characterized by a mouth located beneath the snout and
surrounded by large fleshy lips. They are adapted for
sucking in diatoms, algae and protein material from rocks
and stream bottom. Most attain a length of less than
20-inches, though a few, namely the buffalo and redhorse
grow beyond 24 to 28-inches. Most are dark brown to
olive over the back, covered with silver scales on the sides,
and have a white underside.
Almost a hundred species of suckers are known. Most
are found in North America, and almost all of them are
spring spawners. It is during this spring spawning run that
most are caught by fishermen. Flesh is firm and sweet at
this time of year offering some of the best fish dinners
of the year.
It is traditional with most fishermen to gather on banks
to angle for suckers as soon as there is open water. They
haul out a variety of gear—old fly rods, spinning and spincasting
equipment and simple handlines—and use heavy
sinkers to anchor baits on bottom. Despite the fact that
water is often roiled, old blubber lips moves in quickly
to nudge lines.
Those who have a mind for comfort while waiting for
the suckers to bite usually include camp stools or folding
lawn chairs. Some also tote gas-type camp stoves or
portable charcoal grills to the river bank to boil pots of
coffee or prepare a full course meal. Lacking these, small
fires are often built on shore with whatever driftwood is
available. With a log seat rolled up between the fire and
the fishing lines, any chill in the air is quickly melted
away. When old blubber-lips moves about and finds the
bait, a fisherman is kept busy tending lines and keeping
the smoking fire going at the same time.
Fresh panfried spring suckers are a real treat. Most
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