Fish ID

Whaddaya think....

Oh lord..just like coronovirus it's here now too.


That's a coho btw

It's a salmon.

I wanna know how bushbear and Tug3 would enforce this?

Outside of the spots everything about it looks like a sockeye...

Fish on...

Todd

That was my first thought, besides that it looks yummy too!

+1

lets see the tail...

Sockho.

Cockeye?

Steelhead with Covid-19 and complications of viral pneumonia.


JK, its a sockeye IMO.

Lol..

In case anyone is wondering the meat color was ORANGE on this fish, not red

Sockeye. Oncorhynchus nerka.

The lack of spots on the lower lobe of the caudal fin is the key.

If the season is open and possession is permitted and there is a license to cover the possession, l don’t see any problems.

Not a Colorado river that I recognize. If illegal, and brought back into Colorado, there would be a number of options available for enforcement to consider.

Spots, eye size, and scale size say coho.

The infamous CHINARK!!!!!!!

Yes - where was it caught?

Colorado river Bushbear? I'm confused here.

Colorado does have nice Kokanee fishing for some real brutes (2 - 5 pounders - they eat mysis shrimp all day). Some of them do migrate from reservoir to reservoir through connecting rivers (eg. Elevenmile to Spinney), but those rivers are tiny and short (and not the Colorado).

The only other area on the Colorado River I can think of is Glen Canyon in Utah, but I don't know anything about that....

It's a unique specimen..

It has the small scales and the body of a sock but it's got spots on its back.

Doesn't look like it has many teeth either.

Crazy catch.

Humpeye?

Sockeye is best I can tell from that photo.

I'm going with coho. Too many spots and looking toothy. The white gum line is sticking out to me also .

Just to be safe, I'm sticking it in a bag and hiding it under the floor.......

My text book was of little use. Without the fish in hand and ability to see tail and count fin rays and gill arches, couldn't key it properly.

Always "enjoyed" walking into class at FRI on Montlake, smelling THAT SMELL and going into class and finding dozens of plates with "specimens" to key...........

I initially thought sockeye as well but the spots and eye size say coho. Maybe a hybrid? Where was it caught?

I should have said that it isn’t a river in Colorado that I recognize. Wasn’t trying to say it was the Colorado River.

Yes, there are some dandy Kokanee in Colorado. I think Eleven Mile reservoir is the location of the state record and I think it is over 6 lbs, but I have been gone for 20 years. Blue Mesa has Kokanee, as does Granby and Green Mountain. CDOW/CPW used to give away limits of Kokanee from their spawning operations.

I've seen big Kokanee develop small spots when entering into spawning phase.

My guess: Kokanee / Sockeye.

I agree with the sockeye guess, looks like a Quinault fish I hooked a few years ago. Although that was in summer.

Gotcha. Big koks are still there. The best in the world however is Flaming Gorge. Like consistent 4 - 6 pound koks. I think Herzog did a special on it a few years back if I remember correctly. I've never fished it for Koks, just monster browns and rainbows.

Those Kokanee grow some big lake trout in those reservoirs.

Yes sir. We used to ice fish for big Lakers all the time - a couple 25 - 30 pounders have been brought to hand. I even have special ice rods to handle those bigger fish. Tip a 1/2 or 3/4 oz. Pearl Glow Tube Grub with a chunk of Sucker meat and drop down. Easy pickins'.

Back to the fish in question....it's gotta be a Cockeye or something like that IMO.

Sharp teeth Coho

Soft teeth Sockeye

That being said looks like a typical green headed sockeye.

BD