Robyn Bordelon of Destrehan is no stranger to the pages of Louisiana Sportsman. She has previously been featured for her uncanny ability to consistently catch big river catfish out of her kayak. However, Bordelon recently caught what she considers her most memorable of all.
“I’ve been chasing blue cats in a kayak on the river for nine years, but that one will be remembered above all others,” she said.
On Monday evening, March 16, Bordelon set out to check her anchored jug lines that had been set in the flooded Mississippi River batture for about 24 hours. The jugs were baited with cut finger mullet that she had caught in a cast net.
“I’ve seen pictures of blue catfish with this genetic anomaly before and of course, you bookmark that in your head, but I never thought I would catch one,” she said.
Cow catfish
What she caught was a nice size blue that wasn’t blue at all. It was a multi-colored cat, mostly white with distinct black markings and a pink and black tail. Sometimes called a cow catfish, as the white and black marks often resemble a cow hide pattern, the fish is actually a leucistic or piebald. It has an abnormal condition and lacks pigmentation in a majority of its skin.
This was a beautiful specimen.
“That fish is at a disadvantage from birth with a mostly white coloration that sticks out to predators,” Bordelon said. “When I pulled up the line and saw what it was – and how big it was – I almost lost my lunch.”
Although she regularly turns her catfish catches into dinner, this one got a break.
“I quickly got it netted, took pics, revived it, and happily watched it swim away,” she said.
