The honors of being the most popular and abundant sport fish in Iowa go to the sleek and tasty channel catfish. Sometimes called “prairie trout,” channel catfish are found in nearly all of our lakes, ponds, streams and rivers. Channel catfish are, beyond a doubt, the most abundant game fish found in our streams. Studies have shown that populations of 500 to over 5,000 pounds of catfish per mile in Iowa streams are quite common. Lakes and ponds also produce excellent catfishing, and it is in these waters that the largest specimens are found. The large flood-control reservoirs contain natural populations of channel catfish; however, annual stockings of hatchery-reared fish are required to maintain the populations in small lakes and ponds.