I could swear I saw one 35 years ago on the warrior river about a mile upriver from the Hwy 269 bridge. Is this possible? I was a kid so it may have been a deformed catfish. I can’t remember seeing one ever again. Let me know…

There used to be some in the Locust fork. Daddy caught a pretty good one when i was a kid. An old friend of mine said they caught em pretty regular decades ago.

Doesn’t locust fork drain to the black warrior with no locks in between? Haven’t been out that way in many moons.

My dad used to catch em out of the Coosa before the dams were built

Seen a couple of them below Guntersville a bunch of years ago. Slimy nasty things they are. 😬

Got into the eels and blackfish some years ago when I fished in North Florida and South Alabama. Some spots nothing but those species at certain times of the year. Their high numbers had to hurt the local fish. I would classify both as evasive species and suggest all wiped out if possible. When you hook up with a 3 foot eel their pull is a unique pull and you immediately want to start cussing cause you know you have one of those slimy !@#$$'s on. Usually, might as well pack up and go home, cause if they are in an area most other fish are hiding! We would use a lightweight bream hook and hope they straightened it or broke the line. If not, when one got to the boat you could try snatching it off. Nothing no more funny that seeing someone trying to bring it up to the boat and remove the hook with a pair of pliers. If it comes in the boat it slimes everything! If it rolls up your arm you will have a come apart. Can't hardly get that slime off. They are a delicacy in certain parts and foreigners will pay good money. Funny stories in past watching folks deal with eels! Did I say I hate those !@#$$%'s!

I caught one on the Conecuh river this spring while running hooks for catfish. I have pictures but I’m not sure how to post them on here off of my phone lol

Yes

Been years, but i do remember eels being caught in decatur.

Plenty of freshwater eels

Years ago you could take a deep net and catch 1000s if wanted them at Jordan damn . They'd try to run up the spill way on the damn .

Damn we caught the fish at the bottom of that damn back then.

I've caught 2-3 the past year or so on the Alabama fishing for catfish. The State biologists were wanting specimens so I saved it and froze it. Emailed them about submitting it and never heard a word.

This was caught on Blackwater at the Scout Camp in Walker County, just down the creek from us, about a month ago. It does drain into the Mulberry Fork of the Black Warrior...

used to catch them all the time bottom fishing on the Alabama river, but that was a long time ago..

You find the right holes in the Pea or Conecuh you can catch a mess of them.

Use to catch the heck out of them in a creek that ran through the property I grew up on. My step-granddad use to eat every one I caught.

I caught one once. If I remember right I think I caught it on a cricket.

He must have been one hungry son of a gun.

I heard they are ok as long as you eat them hot

Don't eat em rare you'll die...blood is poisonous