Rich Howard of Edgewater, MD had quite a surprise when he pulled up his crab trap over Memorial Day weekend. Inside was a 7 lb., 26" Northern Snakehead. It is likely that the fish trapped itself going after the frozen alewife he used as bait or perhaps pursuing a softshell crab that was inside. Mr. Howard's pier is located on Almshouse Creek off of the South River, just a few miles east of Solomons Island Rd. (Rte. 2). The pier is at the mouth of a narrow channel that flows into a shallow lagoon.
According to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, this is the first report of a Northern Snakehead on the South River. Since its introduction into our ecosystem in 2002, the population of these invasive species (Channa Argus) has dispersed from the Patuxent and Potomac rivers all the way to eastern shore tributaries such as the Nanticoke and Wicomico. While their impact upon the ecosystem is not yet determined, it is evident that these fish are here to stay. The fact that the MD state record has been broken three times in the last year, most recently by Emory (Dutch) Baldwin with a 18.42 lb. Northern Snakehead, is a clear indicator that these fish are thriving in Maryland waters.