Is it a Spot or Hybrid?

[kenmitch]

1st off I'm new here and not sure if this would be the correct sub-forum to post the question or not. If not I'm sorry.

 

I live by and fish Lake Perris for the most part as it's only a couple of miles from my house. It was once one of the best Spotted Bass lakes in the country. From what I've read recently it seems like the consensus is there are no more Spots left or they have interbred with LMB and are no longer Spots. 

 

Viewing my photos of past catches (May of 2017) I notice this one has the Spotted Bass look and characteristics. Most of the time I'll snap a few different angles but it was a pretty dang small specimen about .5-1lb and on the skinny side so this is the only photo I took of it. The features make me think Spot while the mouth size makes me think LMB which makes me think a Hybrid. Thinking do to it's age and current body structure judging by the mouth might not be the best anyways. 

 

Thanks,

Ken

 

 

 

 

[WRB]

Spotted bass; spot at the tail base and connected dorsal fin. Teeth on the tongue could have been felt.

Tom

[Buccaneer]

Best way to ID is to see where the jaw is in relationship to the eye. Also if there is no gap between the two top fins it’s a spot.

https://tpwd.texas.gov/regulations/outdoor-annual/fishing/freshwater-fishing/bass-identification

[kenmitch]

Thanks guys!

 

I try to get them back in the water quickly so don't really check them out too closely. Just a quick look and a photo or two.  I now fish from a kayak so I can take a little more time to inspect them if need be.

 

Lake Perris was just recently raised back up 30ft after  a decade of low water so I'm hoping it'll rejuvenate itself in the near future. 

 

 

[Ratherbfishing]

Looks like a "standard" LMB to me.

[LxVE Bassin]

LMB

[Glaucus]

It's a Largemouth.

[Tennessee Boy]

It's hard to get a feel for the shape of the fish from the camera angle but the color patterns say Spotted Bass (or Kentucky Bass as we call them around here).

[kenmitch]

It's a Bass we can all agree on. It was a dink so I took 1 quick photo and threw it back without even really thinking about it at the time. Looking at old photos was what made me wonder about it. Easy to check with fish in hand, old photo not so much.

[Drew03cmc]

Largemouth, no doubt.

[WRB]

You can't determine if the bass is hybrid without DNA test, it's clearly a Spotted bass. Perris has both Spots and LMB. 

The photo is good and shows details to identify it;

Scales on the coudal membrane (base of the tail).

Small black spot on the basicoudal for which the bass is named.

Connected dorsal fin.

We can't tell if the eye pupil is past jaw posterior or if the tongue has teeth.

Tom

[Drew03cmc]

No rows of horizontal spots below the lateral line say LMB.

[SDoolittle]

It's a spot. Save the picture to your computer, and zoom in. You'll be able to see the details that Tom mentioned. I guess  it's possible that it may be a hybrid, but it definitely has characteristics of a spot. It is absolutely not a "standard" largemouth.

[kenmitch]

I guess you guys reinforced my reasoning for posting the picture in the 1st place. I really wish I took a couple more photos of the fish in question. It was a dink but I liked the look of the little guy/gal was the only reason I took a photo in the 1st place.

 

Thanks!

[Drew03cmc]

Here's a spot. Look at the horizontal rows of dark spots below the lateral line. 

 

And the pic with the plopper is a largie, without the spots...

 

[kenmitch]

Here's another one in question. I caught this one on my birthday but the dorsal fin was down so I didn't post this one as an example. I'm going to start checking the tongue and lift the dorsal as needed whenever I get one that has the look.

 

[Buccaneer]

If the lower jaw extends past the eye, LMB. Period. Take your pics of questionable species with mouth closed and dorsal fin extended.

[soflabasser]

On 5/27/2018 at 11:49 AM, kenmitch said:

1st off I'm new here and not sure if this would be the correct sub-forum to post the question or not. If not I'm sorry.

 

I live by and fish Lake Perris for the most part as it's only a couple of miles from my house. It was once one of the best Spotted Bass lakes in the country. From what I've read recently it seems like the consensus is there are no more Spots left or they have interbred with LMB and are no longer Spots. 

 

Viewing my photos of past catches (May of 2017) I notice this one has the Spotted Bass look and characteristics. Most of the time I'll snap a few different angles but it was a pretty dang small specimen about .5-1lb and on the skinny side so this is the only photo I took of it. The features make me think Spot while the mouth size makes me think LMB which makes me think a Hybrid. Thinking do to it's age and current body structure judging by the mouth might not be the best anyways. 

 

Thanks,

Ken

 

 

 

 

Looks like a largemouth bass and not a spotted bass but it might be hybrid. Next time check for a tooth patch on the tongue. Contact your states fisheries biologist and they will be able to help you more.

[Bluebasser86]

It's a LMB, plain as can be. The tooth patch thing isn't 100%, and LMB dorsal fins do connect, just not as noticeably as a spotted bass but to what degree is going to vary by each individual like on any animal. The rough scales are a dead giveaway to a spotted bass though. The cheek scales on that fish are the same size as the ones on it's body and it's lacking the rows of dark pigment below the lateral line that are clear signs of a spotted bass also. Could it be a hybrid? If the 2 co-existed in the same body of water then there is a chance, but nothing about that fish says spotted bass to me.

[TnRiver46]

On 6/1/2018 at 8:50 AM, Drew03cmc said:

No rows of horizontal spots below the lateral line say LMB.

#1. Looks like 100 percent largemouth and 0 percent spotted bass