Ever Caught A Meanmouth?

[duckmaster55]

Awhile back at my local lake, Keuka, I saw a guy catch a meanmouth bass, I guess its a mix between a largemouth and a smallmouth.

Has anybody here ever caught one?

[greyleg33]

Never heard of it.

[AK-Jax86]

Never heard of it

[SpinnerbaitSlinger]

http://www.meanmouthbass.com/mean-mouth-bass-eat-everything/ is this what you are referring to?

[duckmaster55]

That's the fish, but that's not where I had heard of it, I meant to say that it is a crosse between spotted and smallmouth

[duckmaster55]

I think this is it

http://www.fishin.com/articles/meanmouth.htm

[cast_and_destroy]

Never heard of it, but a cool looking fish. Kinda looks like a guadalupe bass.

[zwhiten12]

That fish is awesome

[J Francho]

It's possible, but doubtful there are any "mean mouth bass" in Keuka.  Here's a great article that explains the origins of the hybrids and the terms:

 

http://www.in-fisherman.com/2012/08/24/hybrid-black-bass/

[MDBowHunter]

Yea and I'm still married to it!!!

[Munkin]

Yes, I caught one out of a pond on FT. Leonard Wood, Missouri about 10 years ago.

 

Allen

[roadwarrior]

I have caught two in 14 years on the Tennessee River.

Neither of them were exceptional.

[Bassfishing375]

That fish looks so cool, I want to catch one.

[Darren.]

Very cool fish. Almost looks photoshopped (by nature), top half a smallie, bottom a largie.

[pbrussell]

Just wanted to post a picture of an apparent smallmouth/largemouth hybrid caught in a tournament at havusu. 

One of the coolest looking fish I've seen. 

[Siebert Outdoors]

That is cool PB.

 

About 10 years ago a buddy and I were fishing a lake with spots and smallies.  I caught a bass that looked like both but was neither.  I use to have a picture of it.  To this day all we can figure out that is was a mean mouth.  We are not sure and I wish I could find the picture since I know more about it now.

[J Francho]

I wish you had that picture, Mike.  In just about every picture claiming to show a "meanmouth" or whatever is simply a someone holding a smallmouth or a spotted bass, and torqueing the the heck out of it's jaw.  It's either that, or a smallmouth with plain markings.  We catch those all the time on the Great Lakes.  They aren't hybrids.

[Gavin]

We catch a lot of smallie/spot hybrids on some of the rivers I fish...They look kinda like smallmouth...but they have barrings below the lateral line like a spot. Pbrussells fish is 100% smallmouth...not a hybrid...great catch!

[Siebert Outdoors]

I wish you had that picture, Mike.  In just about every picture claiming to show a "meanmouth" or whatever is simply a someone holding a smallmouth or a spotted bass, and torqueing the the heck out of it's jaw.  It's either that, or a smallmouth with plain markings.  We catch those all the time on the Great Lakes.  They aren't hybrids.

 

I'll do some looking around but I bet its lost and gone. 

[tytay89]

Pretty sure it's a mean mouth

[pbrussell]

We catch a lot of smallie/spot hybrids on some of the rivers I fish...They look kinda like smallmouth...but they have barrings below the lateral line like a spot. Pbrussells fish is 100% smallmouth...not a hybrid...great catch!

I wasn't the one that caught it. Either way, the photograph I posted was discussed quite a bit at another forum about the fish possibly being a hybrid. I know I've not seen many smallmouth like it.

[J Francho]

What was found to be "unique" about it?  Looks like a run of the mill, larger than average smallie to me.

[Gavin]

PB....I don't see anything that doesn't say...Smallmouth. Smallmouth color up like that when they become stressed.

 

TT89's fish looks like a smally/spot hybrid because of the hints of barring under the lateral line......Its not a "Meanmouth" (Largemouth/Smallie Hybrid)...Think they can only cross smallmouth and largemouth in the laboratory and the offspring are sterile(I think) and very aggressive fish....Smallmouth and spotted bass readily hybridize in the wild, and the offspring are fertile. They aren't any more aggressive than a spot or a smallmouth. Meanmouth and smallie/spot hybrids are not the same thing.

[pbizzle]

Am I the only one that's disappointed that we don't call them Regular Mouth Bass?

[pbrussell]

well. S'pose I and the others may have been wrong.

Won't be the first time