06-01-2013, 07:18 PM
"If the color doesn't mean female is a just a genetic variation or why would cat fish from the same spot be different colors?"
[#0000FF]The longer you fish...for many species...in many waters...over a full year's time...the more you will come to realize that color alone is not the best way to make a positive ID for species or gender.
I have caught cats all over the country and in some waters both male and female are almost uniformly black color...or bluish...or cream colored. Water chemistry, diet, water depth and clarity...all can influence how fish color up.
I am attaching a couple of pics...of a spawning male and a spawning female...both from Utah Lake. The spawning female has a dark head and looks almost like a spawning male except for the smaller mouth and lips. But the males almost always have the bigger heads, narrower bodies and big lips.
There can be great color variations among all species. And spawning is something that triggers radical color changes...sometimes in both male and female...but usually more pronounced in the males.
[/#0000FF]
[signature]
[#0000FF]The longer you fish...for many species...in many waters...over a full year's time...the more you will come to realize that color alone is not the best way to make a positive ID for species or gender.
I have caught cats all over the country and in some waters both male and female are almost uniformly black color...or bluish...or cream colored. Water chemistry, diet, water depth and clarity...all can influence how fish color up.
I am attaching a couple of pics...of a spawning male and a spawning female...both from Utah Lake. The spawning female has a dark head and looks almost like a spawning male except for the smaller mouth and lips. But the males almost always have the bigger heads, narrower bodies and big lips.
There can be great color variations among all species. And spawning is something that triggers radical color changes...sometimes in both male and female...but usually more pronounced in the males.
[/#0000FF]
[signature]