largemouth sunfish

[wheelierida]

anyone else ever catch something like this before? I call it a largemouth sunfish.

[fishingmike0770]

Caught something that looked like that. I think that they call it a warmouth. I heard its a mix between crappie and sunny but idk. .

[tommyk]

If I am not mistaken , I believe that is a green sunfish.

[wheelierida]

look again! That fish isn't very big and i can fit both my thumbs in its mouth. I don't know maybe it is just deformed but it definatly isn't a normall sunfish.

[Quickstrike]

On the lake i grew up on we would catch a lot of these in the spring, we always called them rock sunnies and they fight like no-one's business. I believe the species is a cross between a pumpkin seed and a rock bass. sounds like an uncommon combination but the these hybrids share many charachteristics of both fish. also, many seem to be caught shallow the same time the rock bass are spawning.

[wheelierida]

oh yeah and the only species we know of that live in this pond is largemouth bass and sunfish, once a bullhead was caught.

[Walleye Guy]

It is a warmouth. It is not a cross between any species.

here is a link from the Ohio DNR. Hopefully its a link I can legally post.

http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/wildlife/Fishing/aquanotes-fishid/warmouth.htm

[wheelierida]

Well are they in season in MN? There is many more where that came from.

[Deitz Dittrich]

The posts above are correct, I believe the Warmouth is what is listed on the MN Dnr as a Hybrid sunfish.. many of our lakes have them in there, and they would fit into the sunfish limmit and regulations.. So yes they are in season.

[Matt Breuer]

The Warmouth is not a hybrid, it's a true breed. That fish is indeed a Warmouth, beutiful fish!

[Quickstrike]

thanks for clearing that up guys, i had been misinformed for 20 years until now.

[wheelierida]

Thanks for all the info guys. it's nice to know.

[Toad]

Respectfully, I've got to disagree. Although most sunfish frequently interbreed between species, which means this specimen could be a cross, the photos show one key characteristic exhibited by green sunfish, not warmouth. While warmouth exhibit dark colored stripes that radiate from the eye to the ear flap, green sunfish sport electric blue-green rays on the gill cover. The fish in question indeed displays these key markings. The warmouth I've seen or caught always are marked by darker brown rays, similar to a rock bass or even, a smallmouth bass. Some biologists believe the term “warmouth” was derived from these distinctive Indian “warpaint” like markings.

Again, it's possible that this fish is a hybrid of some variety, but the electric blue rays on the gill cover are a clear distinguishing characteristic of a green sunfish.

-a friend called Toad

[shortfatguy]

It is a green sunfish. we have them in some of the lakes around here. they will bite on a bare hook! not to hard to catch! if you look close at the pic on the link above you will see that toad is correct. not only does the warmouth have more brownish coloring but it also appears to have a red eye unlike the fish in question.

[Skitterpop]

I catch these around the Fergus Falls/Detroit Lakes region quite frequently. They are Green Sunfish. I have caught a number of them with good size but when you clean them their fillet is small. I typically throw them back. I also find the meat to be less firm than a bluegill. Yes they sure have big mouths (I think it is to match their appetites) and they fight really hard for a sunnie.

[Matt Breuer]

I retract my previous statement, I missed the lack of red eye, great job guys!

[wheelierida]

I am going to submit pics to the dnr and possibly the fish to verify its species. I did a search on the DNR's HSOforum and found only lake Winnona has turned up Warmouth in their surveys. If in fact it is a Warmouth my friend will be the state record holder as there is no listing for Warmouth in the record book. I'll let you all know what they say. Oh hell, maybe i'll just keep calling them largemouth sunfish!

[wheelierida]

I think you are right it is a green sunfish. I found this on the dnr's HSOforum:

Drab in comparison to others of this tribe, the green sunfish is also distinguished by a mouth far larger than is typical of other sunfish. The ear lobe is black with a pale margin. The green sunfish is common in many lakes throughout the state and thrives in creeks. It tolerates greater turbidity and lower dissolved oxygen than bluegill or pumpkinseed.

The green sunfish usually is far smaller than pumkinseed or bluegill, though hybridization with the larger species produces larger fish. Spawning times and habits are similar to those of other sunfish.

Like the bluegill, the green sunfish eats aquatic insects and other invertebrates and small fish. Because of its larger mouth, the green sunfish may eat larger critters than a bluegill of equal size, thus reducing competition between the species.

[Mark Christianson]

Not a Warmouth.

Green sunnie all the way. The Warmouth is not prevelant in MN whatsoever.

[ChuckN]

I've caught that very same fish in the Le Homme Dieu chain near Alexandria. Green Sunfish is what it is.

[Gissert]

Yep, it's a greenie. The lake I live on has them, and my brother calls them bassengills, LOL.

[abens1078]

Anybody else ever hear 'em called 'rubbertails' or is that just from down here in the south. I think 'rubbertail' is the scientific name.

[Mr. Pike1]

Not to beat a dead horse here. The correct spcies is a green sunfish. Due to the size it is possible a mix of some other speciees but definatly green sunfish. Concerning the statement that Warmouth are not in MN fishing waters. This statement is incorrect. They are not common in lakes but you can find them in river systems and in many cases will be found with Small mouth bass or rock bass.