Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks
Through the years, burbot (ling), a native species to waters throughout Montana, have been labeled as disgusting, ugly and slimy. Some people have gone so far as to say they wouldn't even touch one of those snaky things.
Burbot have been given a variety of unattractive names, such as mud blower, eelpout, lush, mud shark and even lawyer.
As a fisheries worker who handles burbot on a regular basis, I can honestly say that I have never had a ling spit mud at me, try to take me to court, cry about anything, drink heavily of alcoholic beverages, or attack any swimmers.
Actually, they are one of the most intriguing fish swimming in our waters. Unlike other Montana game fish, they spawn during the winter, right when the ice goes off, at water temperatures of around 35 degrees Fahrenheit.
Large female ling are capable of producing more than 1 million eggs each year and ling are the only representative of the Gadidae (codfish) family in freshwater. In short, they're pretty special.
They are voracious predators and provide a decent tussle on the end of an angler's line. The name 'burbot' is derived from the Latin word 'barba', meaning beard or barbel, referring to the single whisker present on their chins.
Their mottled, green-camouflage skin is quite impressive, if time is taken to look one over. Perish the thought, some people might even say their skin is pretty.
In Walker, Minn., the townspeople actually hold an annual eelpout festival on Leech Lake to honor ling, during which they fish, hold various events, and sample the ling-table fare that some have labeled "poor man's lobster" due to their white, flaky flesh which is quite comparable to the marine crustacean when dipped in garlic butter.
In the Great Lakes, fisheries personnel have sampled burbot in depths of more than 600 feet. In Montana, you find them in prairie rivers like the Missouri and Yellowstone and in some big reservoirs like Fort Peck and Canyon Ferry.
During the past couple of years, studies have been started to identify important migratory patterns, spawning aggregations, and overall distribution of ling in the Yellowstone River.
Within the last few months, these beautiful fish have been exhibiting some interesting movements. In our study, Burbot #1 (named Ham by some of our adopt-a-fish students) set up camp in a deep hole near the Duck Creek Bridge, just west of Billings, for about eight months.
Then, at the turn of the year, it decided to get some exercise (must have been a New Year's resolution) and traveled upstream to the Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone near Laurel and proceeded up the Clarks Fork 7.8 miles. By April 9th she had returned to the Yellowstone to visit some of our other radio-implanted burbot 1.5 miles downstream of the Clarks Fork/Yellowstone River confluence.
Burbot #2 (named Pomp in the program) was implanted with a transmitter in mid March of this year near Worden and decided to travel about 15 miles upstream to meet up with sauger #2 and catfish #1 (Enos, Kitty, Princess) near Huntley for the Easter Holiday.
Since sauger #2 and catfish #1 (Enos, Kitty, Princess) didn't immediately leave the Huntley area when burbot #2 (Pomp) arrived, we can assume that he was welcomed to Easter dinner, regardless of his appearance.
As for sauger #1 and catfish #2 (Tubby, Bob), they were quite content holding Easter festivities at their own residences, so they have remained in their respective places for the time being.
So say what you want about the looks of this ugly duck-ling. Some people think they look just fine - and other fish think so, too.
To learn more about Missouri-Yellowstone Adopt-A-Fish and follow radio-implanted fish and turtles, just go to www.pikemasters.com and click on the Adopt-A-Fish link. Teachers can sign up their classes for the program, name their two adopted fish and join in on the fun.
Nathan McClenning is a fisheries biologist with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks stationed at Billings.