The Blue Catfish

Trophy Fish turned Trouble

Blue catfish were introduced into Virginia waters in the 1970s for sport fishing. Native to the Mississippi and Ohio River basins, they can grow up to 150 pounds — and in the Chesapeake Bay, they have no natural predators. Unlike their bottom-feeding cousins, these fish feed on all of the crabs, oysters, and fish we depend on to keep the Bay in balance. But thanks to that varied diet, their flavor is clean, mild, and even a little sweet, drawing comparisons to striped bass or halibut.

This fish doesn’t just dominate the ecosystem, it outperforms expectations on the plate.
So we decided it deserved a name more fitting -

The

Bay Lion

Ecosystem Disruptor

Blue catfish are an invasive species with no natural predators in the Chesapeake Bay. They are highly predatory, disrupting the food chain by eating nearly every native species they encounter. This has been a major driver of the decline in crab, rockfish, menhaden, shad, and oyster populations throughout the Bay.

Crab populations at lowest levels since 1990

Here to Stay

First introduced into the Rappahannock River over 50 years ago, blue catfish were thought to only live in fresh water. But they’ve thrived in the brackish Chesapeake Bay, now dominating every major tributary. And unlike channel catfish, females can produce hundreds of thousands of eggs, and males fiercely guard their nests.

Blue cats account for 75% of the Biomass in some tributaries

See What's on the Line

Behind every catch is a battle for the future of the bay

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How We're Fighting Back

Bluecat Fisheries is dedicated to revitalizing the Chesapeake Bay by procuring, processing, and supplying these fish in the form of protein dense food, animal feed, soil applicant, and more. By providing a place for watermen to sell blue catfish year round, we are making strides in reclaiming the Bay and restoring its natural ecosystem.