Big fish eat small fish

[FishOn!]

My friend was taking a fly fishing class and his instructor told an interesting story. He was fishing the Green River and he hooked up with a little rainbow. As he was reeling it in a huge brown came and engulfed the rainbow on the end of his line. He was able to fight the brown for awhile and got a look at it but the brown must have not been hooked really cuz he poped off and the bow was still hooked. Must have had the bow lodged in his throat. Anyone have similar stories? Anyone land one in this manner? By the way, supposedly it was a massive brown.

[JBinUTAH]

Many times fishing the ocean, but never freshwater. I am sure it happens. I have landed several like Ling Cod, Sculpen, etc. Would be some big brown to do that.

[Trout4x]

I have not and don't know of anyone that has been so lucky.

[Vanilla]

Fishing the Green, I have had on several occasions when I am bringing in a smaller fish, that a very larger, and I mean very large brown trailed the situation trying to make a meal out of it, but I have never actually got one to the net. On one occasion, right after this happened to me, my partner for the trip hooked a smaller rainbow. While fighting it, all of the sudden it became an extremely difficult fight. He thought maybe it was hooked in the moss or something because he couldn't get a good look at it. As he continued to fight, he realized he was not fighting a bigger fish. Got both of them all the way to his net, went to net them and the brown opened his mouth and let go. The estimated size of that carnivor was over 22 inches. It was truely HUGE! The poor rainbow that he originally caught had big gash marks in its sides from the teeth of the lunker. So yes, I have witnessed this first hand. Not so uncommon. Hopefully everyone doesn't run out and start fishing with huge rapalas, or rainbow trout plugs now! (although it would probably work pretty well)

[chanceb]

I was fly fishing for Bass on Newton Res. one year in the late fall. I hooked about a 12 inch bass and had it almost to my float tube when a very large figure came out of no where and swallowed my bass. Slashed right through my line too. Nice way to get introduced to Mr. Tiger Muskey!

[FrozenFish]

I've had this happen to me twice.

1st. The first time was at Pineveiw back when the perch were over-populated I was fishing at the narrows on an earlie morning catching perch since that is all i could catch at the time, I had hooked a perch and started reeling in when all of a sudden it just stoped, naturally I thought the perch got off and hooked me on a rock which trout know how to do so well, so I started jerking my pole when all off a sudden the drag starts riping out and i saw the back side of a muskie, faught it for a good minute befor it let go and gave me my nice shredded perch.

2nd. The second time was over at Mantua, this has acturally happend to me more then once it late spring over there I was fishing for bass and would catch the numerous 8 to 10 inchers that are in there and right when I would bring the little bass up to shore and almost out of the water I would have a much larger (i'd say around 20 inches) bass would shoot out of no where, grab the smaller bass, thrash out of the water then take off. The bass always seemed to be fine when i released them, as compared to the perch which had large gashes all over it.

[Sir Drake]

I had a monster largemouth hit the small crappie I had hooked with a fly rod at Stansbury last summer. Was watching the crappie coming up and then the bass slammed it. I had the bass on until I leaned over the boat to haul them out of the water. The crappie was fine and was let go. My buddy ended up landing a bullfrog later in the day...

[powerbait]

IMy buddy ended up landing a bullfrog later in the day...

Not surprising, I suppose, that a bullfrog would take a fly (was it stuck to it's tongue?). In any event, everyone please do not practice catch and release will bullfrogs. I loved them when I lived in the East, but ounce for ounce they are terrific predators and are displacing native frogs at an alarming rate here in Utah. So, if you catch one, please consider either fried frog legs or putting a hook through it and doing a little bait fishing for big bass.

[Fred]

FishOn!

I heard the same story from an instructor about big browns chasing rainbows on the Green. I have never seen it myself, but supposedly they have been seen actually chasing them onto the banks. So, the guy at Western Rivers who told me the story created a fly to imitate the rainbows. It's called the Pugg's Bunny and looks like a huge zonker. You can probably get more details if you go to the shop and ask about it.

Good luck.

[CycleFish]

Happened to me last year on the Green.

Hooked a small rainbow, had it jump a couple of times. Was stripping it in out of sight & it suddenly gets this massive second wind! The fights back on, only this time it has lots more of it. When I get it to the surface, little rainbow has big Brown (not that big though) wrapped around him. He only let go when I dipped the net to land the little one.
Ha, talk about having a bad day. Unlucky bugger probably got hit by a bus after I released him!
M

[Fish2hard]

Had a similar situation when I was fishing one of the many waters in the Uintah area, though somewhat reversed. I latched onto a very nice sized brown. After landing him, I went to take out the fly and there was a skeleton of a smaller fish logded in his throat. I'm sure he/she was very happy that I happened along to help "clear it's throat".

[G-stone]

While I was fishing the Greys I did find a dead sculpin in the water. Upon further inspection of the fish I found another, smaller, sculpin stick in its mouth. Its tailfin was sticking straight out of the larger fishes mouth. I guess a creature needs hands to perform the heimlich manuever...

[Mason]

http://www.performanceflyrods.com/fishstory/bigfish.html

[ARW]

Its common on the Green, especially in May just after the UF&G chums it with rainbow fingerlings.

I used to have a rod set up with a top water popper for when we would get a brown chasing a hooked rainbow. Just like teasing a marlin.

[AK flyboy]

Growing up in Alaska, it was not uncomon to be fighting a small norhtern and then have a huge one come up and lay into the smaller one. More than a few times we landed large pike which had the tails of fish 2/3 their size hanging out their mouths.

Another time while bonefishing in Belize, I had a nice bonefish on, and all of a sudden the line when slack. When I realed in the line, I had half of a bonefish! A Barracuda had come up and bitten the bonefish in half. After I unhooked the bonefish half, I chucked it into the water about ten feet away and watched the Barracuda come and finish it off.

[FishOn!]

Do we have em in Utah? If so where? And are they known for being monsters like that one in the story. That was insane!

[Trout4x]

fshfanatic you are correct unless they have been planted in the last 24 hours.

[Davey]

Do we have em in Utah? If so where? And are they known for being monsters like that one in the story. That was insane!

I've never heard of any in utah waters. Idaho does have a few and they protect them like a virgin's ..... on prom night. If you ever catch one let it go quick and try not to tell anyone. They look similar to an arctic char but are normally smaller.

[FlyGuy]

I was floating the Green some years ago and witnessed a dude in a driftboat hook a 10" rainbow on a pretty big 'hopper pattern. As he brought the little 'bow toward the boat... Wham! Big ol' brown trout hits the little rainbow. He actually landed both fish; the 'hopper was big enough and sticking out of the rainbow's mouth far enough to hook the brown too. He kept both fish to mount, the rainbow under 13" and the brown over 20". The brown trout weighed over 10 lbs. He was a little nervous as the boat neared Little Hole, after all, the brown was caught on bait!

[thor444]

I was fishing with FlySmiley (I know, he is a CRAPPY witness) on the Provo a few years ago when I hooked a small Rainbow, maybe eight inches. I had him dancin on top of the water at knee level. I went to grab him and saw this eyeball just down stream from him. I stepped back, I thought I was going to be attacked by a Beaver or something. I realized it was a huge Brown (his eye was as big as a Nickel) floating up from the bottom on his side, dead fish style. He turned and snapped the Rainbow and tried to swallow him by shaking his head like you see alligators do.

I reached for my net to scoop them both and he spooked. Took my whole rig backinto a pool and my line was flying of the water. I thought that I may have foul hooked him or tangled them both. The bottom of this fishes Jaw went about 2 inches past the Rainbows body. Unfortunately, my line tangled my net and I never was able to put my rod too them both. It broke me off good and fast.

This same evening I doubled up with a fish on each fly and got charged by a moose. Full Moon?