Cisco/tullibee

Geezle · #1 12-14-2009, 08:33 AM

So does anybody in the area specifically fish for cisco? Heck...are there even cisco in the area for that matter?

I got thinking about these guys after reading a little section in an ice fishing book.

When I was ice fishing growing up in Sask they would sometimes be a by-catch, and got pretty much the same treatment that burbot got at the time...we usually just left them on the ice as they apparently not good for eating. Well now I know that burbot are good for eating, and this book said that tullibee are as well.

So who out here fishes specifically for these guys? How are they for eating?

jjstar · #2 12-14-2009, 08:43 AM

WE caught lots last winter at the same time we were fishing for Whites in the shallows. Using the wire worms. I did not eat them myself but some guys were taking them to smoke with their whites they thought they were great.

pecker · #3 12-14-2009, 07:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjstar

WE caught lots last winter at the same time we were fishing for Whites in the shallows. Using the wire worms. I did not eat them myself but some guys were taking them to smoke with their whites they thought they were great.

interesting. when i googled tullibee i got several sights with pictures of tulls& whites - they are very hard to distinguish apart except tulls max out around 2 #'s while whites go 10#'s plus. could any one tell me if we have tullibees in southern alberta- particularly travers reservoir . we've been catching what we think are whites around 2-2 1/2 #s. hitting wire worms in 8-10 ft. of water. any replies would be appreciated. thanks.

#4 12-14-2009, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pecker

interesting. when i googled tullibee i got several sights with pictures of tulls& whites - they are very hard to distinguish apart except tulls max out around 2 #'s while whites go 10#'s plus. could any one tell me if we have tullibees in southern alberta- particularly travers reservoir . we've been catching what we think are whites around 2-2 1/2 #s. hitting wire worms in 8-10 ft. of water. any replies would be appreciated. thanks.

Just Crawling Valley that I'm aware of.

pecker · #5 12-14-2009, 07:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sheephunter

Just Crawling Valley that I'm aware of.

thanks- have you ever caught, kept & ate any.

addicted · #6 12-14-2009, 08:23 PM

supposedly tullibee have more of a pronounced bottome jaw

DuckBrat · #7 12-14-2009, 11:31 PM

Compare the tails you will find a large difference. The tullibee tail is more heavily angled and larger in relation to it's body than a WF. The tullibee flesh is good but as most know they are more prone to be parasitized by muscle invading worms than most WF.

Geezle · #8 12-15-2009, 07:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DuckBrat

Compare the tails you will find a large difference. The tullibee tail is more heavily angled and larger in relation to it's body than a WF. The tullibee flesh is good but as most know they are more prone to be parasitized by muscle invading worms than most WF.

Now that I think of it, I think the parasites may have been why we never kept them back in the day.

Heard they're maybe a little on the oily side too?

#9 12-15-2009, 09:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pecker

thanks- have you ever caught, kept & ate any.

Not from Crawling Valley but I've taken thousands of them out of nets when I used to commercial fish in Manitoba. We smoked them up occasionally and I honestly couldn't tell the difference from whitefish in taste.

pikester · #10 12-15-2009, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by addicted

supposedly tullibee have more of a pronounced bottome jaw

Yes I was actually just watching an ice fishing episode of In-Fisherman & Gordon Pyzer pointed out that whitefish have a more pronounced upper lip, & a "shoulder hump" whereas ciscoes/ tullibies have a larger lower jaw & no shoulder hump. He says this larger lower jaw is indicative of more pelagic fish which are more likely to suspend or cruise higher in the water column although the species will intermix. I have caught so few whities that I would have to have one of each side by side to tell them apart! FYI, next weeks In-Fisherman is supposed to highlight icing burbot which might be interesting.

pecker · #11 12-15-2009, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pikester

Yes I was actually just watching an ice fishing episode of In-Fisherman & Gordon Pyzer pointed out that whitefish have a more pronounced upper lip, & a "shoulder hump" whereas ciscoes/ tullibies have a larger lower jaw & no shoulder hump. He says this larger lower jaw is indicative of more pelagic fish which are more likely to suspend or cruise higher in the water column although the species will intermix. I have caught so few whities that I would have to have one of each side by side to tell them apart! FYI, next weeks In-Fisherman is supposed to highlight icing burbot which might be interesting.

thanks pikester. the next wf OR tully i catch this winter i will look for the charateristics . it would be great to have one of each side by side . what baffles me is what we catch at travers res. are all 2-21/2 lbs. yet i have seen whites at magregor 7-8 lbs.

WayneChristie · #12 12-15-2009, 06:55 PM

used to be some pretty big whites in Travers years ago. maybe you are just hitting a school of one age class?

#13 12-15-2009, 07:10 PM

Travers seems to have a fairly robust population of whites. It means you encounter massive schools (hundreds, maybe even thousands sometimes) of younger fish (2-3 year olds, 10-12''). I think it's because there is lots of good spawning habitat for them in that lake. You will run into the odd school of jumbo's in there. I know 5-6 lb whites are fairly common in a few spots on that reservoir. The lakes with lower whitefish densities will have the monsters. The biggest southern whitefish i ever caught was 27'' long, would have weighed 7-8 lbs. Kind of looked like a tarpon

. They average around 3-4 lbs in the system where i caught that one, you hardly ever catch smaller ones (3-4 lb white is a pretty good fish). Is there big ones in Travers? I'd guarantee there is, but low numbers of them compared to smaller fish. White's are still hardly a sport fish in the southern reservoirs, not popular like they seem to be in central Alberta.

pikester · #14 12-15-2009, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrs

Travers seems to have a fairly robust population of whites. It means you encounter massive schools (hundreds, maybe even thousands sometimes) of younger fish (2-3 year olds, 10-12''). I think it's because there is lots of good spawning habitat for them in that lake. You will run into the odd school of jumbo's in there. I know 5-6 lb whites are fairly common in a few spots on that reservoir. The lakes with lower whitefish densities will have the monsters. The biggest southern whitefish i ever caught was 27'' long, would have weighed 7-8 lbs. Kind of looked like a tarpon

. They average around 3-4 lbs in the system where i caught that one, you hardly ever catch smaller ones (3-4 lb white is a pretty good fish). Is there big ones in Travers? I'd guarantee there is, but low numbers of them compared to smaller fish. White's are still hardly a sport fish in the southern reservoirs, not popular like they seem to be in central Alberta.

I know there are huge whities in Travers because a year or so ago I was below the spillway when the water was crystal clear & about 7ft deep. There were schools of whites milling around & lots of them looked to be in the 5-7lb range. If you were targeting whites through the ice @ Travers, what area & depth would you look at?

#15 12-15-2009, 08:00 PM

I'll send you a pm with a few ideas. Generally, i'd start in 10-12 ft in the morning fishing deeper as the day goes on.

wildman · #16 12-15-2009, 08:18 PM

I agree with duck!! We get many at lesser slave and kept a few here and there and always found worms in the flesh. Too bad. They are cool little chunks.

pecker · #17 12-15-2009, 08:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pikester

I know there are huge whities in Travers because a year or so ago I was below the spillway when the water was crystal clear & about 7ft deep. There were schools of whites milling around & lots of them looked to be in the 5-7lb range. If you were targeting whites through the ice @ Travers, what area & depth would you look at?

8-10 ft. sightfishing. off the resort on the south side. using wire worms - the odd huge white would swim by right off the bottom - drop the worm down and they would shy away from it. we've caught them anywhere from a ft. below the ice to 3ft. off the bottom and had hits with these 2 lbrs.they're good eating but i'm wondering what we're eating.

pecker · #18 12-15-2009, 08:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pecker

8-10 ft. sightfishing. off the resort on the south side. using wire worms - the odd huge white would swim by right off the bottom - drop the worm down and they would shy away from it. we've caught them anywhere from a ft. below the ice to 3ft. off the bottom and had hits with these 2 lbrs.they're good eating but i'm wondering what we're eating.

world wide says they're whites but i beg to differ til i'm certain. STUBBERN OLD FART>

#19 12-15-2009, 08:50 PM

Look here if you want to see what's in each lake.

http://xnet.env.gov.ab.ca/imf/imf.jsp?site=fw_mis_pub

pecker · #20 12-16-2009, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrs

Look here if you want to see what's in each lake.

http://xnet.env.gov.ab.ca/imf/imf.jsp?site=fw_mis_pub

very helpful maps thanks jrs.

DuckBrat · #21 12-16-2009, 10:13 PM

If you want some cool and aggressive whitefish action try fishing one to two feet over sand first thing in the morning before sun up. I don't get many turning away or refusing in the Shallows. Sometimes have hit them in 10 inches of water under the ice. It was a little disappointing when you first drill that hole to see that little water under you but if your in a good WF lake, drop it down and hold on! Be careful of your Auger blades. The tullibee cruise weed lines (6 to 12 feet) closer to deeper drop offs and swam in tight schools 3 to 5 in number. It's is interesting to watch a tight swimming school like that moving as one, it's as if the the bunch had one brain. They cruise a lot faster than the whites do and are always nervous.