Need a place to catch catfish?
Nearby?
Wildlife and Fisheries’ Get Out & Fish! Program has stocked or will stock adult channel catfish in 17 ponds across our state.
Already stocked locations include Burbank Park in Baton Rouge; Joe Brown Park in New Orleans; Sidney Hutchinson Park in Walker; Zemurray Park in Hammond; Bogue Chitto State Park in Franklinton; Oil and Gas Park in Jennings; Girard Park in Lafayette; Southside Regional Park in Youngsville; Purple Heart Memorial Park in Ragley; and, Bayou Country Sports Park in Houma.
The springtime stocking plans also include parks and ponds in Minden, Ruston, Grambling, Vidalia, Natchitoches and Pineville.
Fishermen 18 and older must have a state basic fishing license.
With the Easter holidays coming next week, the stocking efforts provide an opportunity for youngsters to catch a fish or two. Just be careful of catfish. Their dorsal and pectoral fins can hurt.
Lagniappe Day
Wildlife and Fisheries has scheduled its annual Boating Education Lagniappe Day for April 26 at nine places across the state.
Baton Rouge is not among those locations.
Cities and towns included on the list are Metairie at the Jefferson Parish Regional Library, 4747 West Napoleon Avenue (9:15 a.m.-5:30 p.m.); Lafayette at the Wildlife and Fisheries office, 200 Dulles Road (8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.); Ponchatoula at Apocalypse Sports, 40147 Interstate Service Road (9 a.m.-5 p.m.); Slidell at the Tammany Yacht Club, 1196 Harbor Drive (8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.); and, in Morgan City at the Bayou L'ourse Recreation Center, 1213 La. 662 (8 a.m.-4 p.m.).
Other locations include Lake Charles, Homer, Monroe and Pineville.
Lunch will be provided and successful completion of the course means you will have a National Association of State Boating Law Administrators certificate.
State law requires anyone born after Jan. 1, 1984 to have completed a NASBLA-approved boating education course and carry proof of completion to operate a motorboat in excess of 10 horsepower.
Course instruction covers classification and hulls of boats, outboard engines and motors, legal and equipment requirements, navigation rules and charts and trailering and might also include sailboats, canoeing and personal watercraft.
The classes fill quickly. To register, go to Wildlife and Fisheries’ website: wlf.louisiana.gov/page/boater-education, then click on the link for “Find A Course Near You”.
Other courses
Wildlife and Fisheries offers other instruction/days in Hunter Education (classes & field days), Boater Education, trapping and a variety of fishing classes throughout the year. Class sizes are limited and preregistration is requested. Website: louisianaoutdoors.com/events
A last say-so
Wildlife and Fisheries’ Wildlife Division has set a final public comment session for 10 a.m.-noon, April 22 (Tuesday) at state headquarters on Quail Drive in Baton Rouge.
Public comment will be taken only on the amendments offered since the 2025-26 hunting seasons were proposed in early January.
Among the handful of amendments were the much-discussed West and East zones duck season dates, use of equipment like airboats and surface-drive boats on wildlife management areas and using tracking dogs for deer.
