Statewide Iowa – A bill to make it legal to go “noodling” for catfish in Iowa lakes, streams and rivers is under consideration in the Iowa House. Representative Ray Sorenson of Greenfield sponsored the bill to have the state start issuing noodling licenses after hearing from Iowans who want to try to catch catfish with their bare hands.
Sorenson says the teenage girl in that family went “noodling” in another state.
It is legal to go “noodling” for catfish in at least 17 other states, including Wisconsin and Illinois. The fishing technique has opponents. Jim Obradovich is a lobbyist for the Iowa Conservation Alliance.
Beyond the potential of injury to the human hand, Obradovich says noodling isn’t good for the fish.
The bill has cleared the House Natural Resources Committee and was reviewed this past week by another subcommittee. Noodling for fish is sometimes referred to as “tickling” or “hogging” and it is currently illegal in Iowa. People caught using the noodling technique to snag a catfish can face a fine. In 2019, a man who pulled a 50 pound catfish from the Mississippi River and was photographed with his catch in downtown Davenport was fined nearly 100 dollars. In 2012, a Harlan man was pictured in the local newspaper with a 30 pound catfish and he was assessed a 177 dollar fine for noodling.
