How to Get Gravid Bowfin in Monster Hunter Wilds

While Wilds doesn’t have true aquatic combat, it does have a plethora of rare fish to catch whether for requests or for journal completion. One of the slightly rarer catches needed for one of the fishing requests is the Gravid Bowfin, so here’s how to catch one in Monster Hunter Wilds.

How and Where to Catch the Gravid Bowfin in Monster Hunter Wilds

If you’re after the Gravid Bowfin, it’s likely for the 3rd of the fishing quests given by Kanya in the back of the Scarlet Forest Base Camp. Even if you’re not doing it for the request, you’ll probably need to do them as the ideal bait, the Emerald Jitterbait, is earned from the previous step in the same questline. While you’re on the quest, you can also ask Kanya for advice by talking to her again, where she will impart that the Bowfin is most easily found during the season of Plenty and during Dawn and Dusk. Additionally, while you can catch the Gravid Bowfin with the Capture Net, it won’t count towards quest completion.

As for areas it is found in, the Gravid Bowfin can appear in pretty much any zone in Monster Hunter Wilds but is most common during the aforementioned times. We’ve found it in areas as different as the Oasis on the Windswept Plains, the Great Lake in the Crimson Forest, and the Crimson Rivulet Campsite in the Oilwell Basin, with some players even reporting it from the pond next to Kanya herself. Several Players have also had success ‘clearing out’ the pond of other fish too, if only because it makes the fish easier to see and catch.

While fishing, you’ll want to look out for an orange-hued, medium-sized fish without the long fins of the Arowana or distinctive half-and-half coloration of the Sushifish. There is also a green-colored version called the Virid Bowfin that you’ll want to either avoid or just fish to get it out of the way.

When you’ve identified a likely target, you’ll want to cast reasonably near them but as far out from the shore as you can go. This is because the Bowfin is attracted to moving lines, but not jigging ones, so you’ll want to have plenty of room to slowly reel in as you attract it. It also appears to take quite a while to bite, so don’t pull in too early. This is also why having other fish in the area is annoying, as they can often steal the bite in the time it takes the Bowfin to work up the courage.

Once you’ve caught your Gravid Bowfin in Monster Hunter Wilds, you can take it back to Kanya in the Forest Base Camp to finish the quest and earn some extra Honey and Jeweled Mullet Roe for your trouble.

If you enjoyed this guide or found it useful, be sure to check out some of Siliconera’s other Monster Hunter Wilds guides such as Where is the Ember Rufflizard and How to Beat the Guardian Doshaguma.

Monster Hunter Wilds is immediately available for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.