One of the trees relocated from the Landings Building to make more room for more carts has been moved to the roadside near the Huyler House. I stopped by on my way to coffee last Wednesday to ask Greg about it. He said it was a Catawba tree, which I had heard of, but that is about it. Greg said it would have white flowers in the spring and then throw out long bean-like seed pods. The best part, he told us, was the worm sometimes found in the seed pods. He described it as iridescent black-blue, with stripes. It’s great for fishing.
The thought of a striped worm for fish bait was intriguing, so I decided to find out more about a Catawba Tree. Also known as Catalpa, the tree is native to the southeast coast. It is related to the trumpet creeper and cross vines (the Bignonia family), but is more of a medium sized tree (40 feet, relatively short lived). The University of Georgia describes it as the “fish bait” tree, pointing out that Catawba is the Native American term for the tree. The worms Greg referred to are the caterpillars of the Catalpa Sphinx Moth. They are striped with a single horn and range from yellow to black. According to about.com’s forestry site,
The catalpa caterpillar is tough in texture. The worm oozes a bright fluorescent green fluid that smells sweet when put on a hook. The tough skin makes for staying hooked and a fresh worm will attract fish with its smell and its wiggle. It is revered as the best fish bait to be found naturally.
Catalpa worms can be preserved alive by placing them in cornmeal packed in an air tight container and frozen. It has been said that when this container is opened and the worms are removed from the meal, they thaw and become active and as effective in catching fish as ever.
The UGA site gives recommendations for planting the trees to attract the caterpillars, “A few catalpa trees along a fence row are usually enough to supply moth larvae for fish bait at a family level.” It seems that they are used for freshwater fishing, but maybe we’ll give it a try for salt water too. Please comment if you are experienced with these! We’d love to hear more.
I just eat this stuff up. Thank you so much for keeping your fertile little brain busy answering questions I always have. I’d heard about this tree for years.
My grand dad had 2 catalpa trees growing on his lake front property. It was always my dream to stand between them for a wedding photo when they were blooming. Unfortunately, I did not have a list for wedding photos and forgot to have my picture taken. Oh well, they are beautiful trees in the spring.
Judy, I am really enjoying your blog. Thanks so much for keeping everyone informed about Dewees.
Judy—-we had two trees near home in our small town down here in the Lowcountry. We fished the creeks and rivers with those worms often and they indeed were great bait. One of the “town” bullies used to make his worst enemy eat the worms and he survived but I don’t think he particularly enjoyed them. The bully is now an undertaker and his foe is still alive!
This worm is considered by all I know as the best bream bait, tho I have also caught catfish and bass( small ones) with them.For some unknown reason in the last five years the amount and the timing of the worm has changed. It is harder to find and usually only on young trees and has gone from being around June 1st to the 20s.
Oh,yes, I am in the upstate between Greenville and Spartanburg.