Freshwater · Late spring through autumn; best on warm nights
Southern Catfish
Silurus meridionalis
China's giant of the night shift - a broad-headed, big-mouthed Silurus that hunts the deep holes of the Yangtze after dark and tests heavy tackle like few freshwater fish can.
Seasons · Peak
Identifying features
- Huge smooth, scaleless catfish with a very broad, flat head and an enormous mouth - the 'big-mouth' catfish
- Two pairs of barbels in adults: one very long pair at the mouth corners plus a short chin pair (young fish carry a third pair that disappears with age)
- Tiny spineless dorsal fin set far forward; no adipose fin at all
- Very long anal fin running along the underside into the rounded tail fin
- Dark olive-brown to grey above, pale creamy white below
Habits
- Native to the Yangtze, Pearl and Min river systems of southern China - a fish of big, slow rivers and connected lakes
- Strictly nocturnal bottom predator: hunts fish, shrimp and frogs by taste and scent after dark
- Rests by day in deep holes, undercut banks and rock piles; moves into the shallows to feed at night
- Spawns April to June in flowing water, laying sticky eggs on sand and gravel
- One of China's most important farmed food fish - grows very fast in warm water
Distribution
Regional coverage expanding
Where to find them
- Deep holes below rapids and dam tailwaters
- Confluences where a tributary meets the main river
- Undercut banks, rock piles and bridge footings after dark
Where they live
How to catch them
Night ledgering with live bait River
Rig: Heavy sliding sinker, 5/0-7/0 circle hook, live loach or small fish hard on the bottom
Bait/lure: Live loach, small live carp, fresh shrimp
Key tip: Southern catfish feed almost entirely after dark - set up over a known deep hole before dusk and give a run time before tightening up.
Slow-rolled swimbaits after dark River
Rig: Large soft swimbait on a heavy jig head, crawled slowly along the bottom at night
Bait/lure: 15-20 cm soft swimbaits, big scented soft plastics
Key tip: Retrieve painfully slowly with long pauses; strikes come as a heavy, deliberate pull rather than a snap.
Best baits & lures
Baseline setup
- Rod: Heavy spinning or baitcasting rod
- Line: 30-50 lb braid with a strong leader
- Terminal: Sliding sinkers, 5/0-7/0 circle hooks, heavy-duty swivels
Recommended gear for this species
Rod · Best value
9' 5-weight fly rod outfit
≈ US$180-260
Covers chironomid lakes and small rivers with one setup.
Flies · Budget
Chironomid assortment (30 patterns)
≈ US$25-40
Chironomids are 60% of a lake rainbow's diet in spring.
Picks come from our rule library — never paid placements. Prices are guides; affiliate links may earn us a commission.
Typical size
Common 20-40 in and 10-45 lb; big river fish pass 50 in, and the largest exceed 80 lb
On the table
Excellent - a star table fish of Sichuan cooking, firm white flesh with few bones.
Similar species
Yellow CatfishYellow catfish shares the same rivers but stays under a pound, is yellowish and mottled, and carries four pairs of barbels plus an adipose fin
Channel CatfishChannel catfish has a deeply forked tail and a proper rayed dorsal fin; the southern catfish's tail is rounded and its anal fin runs almost the body's lengthRegulations vary by area and can change in-season — always check the official rules for your area before you fish. Regulations guide →
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