Bear lake Mack color phases

[BearLakeFishGuy]

I just saw your post so thus my delay in responding. As others have mentioned, the males are typically darker than females. Both of your fish are obviously adults, but sometimes the juvenile fish are much lighter than the adult fish. Diets of the fish mainly affect the color of the meat. However, the depths at which you catch the fish, actually, how deep the fish is typically living in, makes a big difference on color too. The fish that are typically in shallower water (even though you might have caught it deeper) are typically darker. Fish that have been living in the deeper water (especially in Bear Lake with that calcium carbonate precipitate in the water at deeper depths) are typically lighter. Finally, spawning season has a lot to do with laker coloration on Bear Lake. The lakers are darker in Aug-Nov are darker than during summer months. So, it can be a combination of factors for sure. Overall, lake trout out of Bear Lake are MUCH lighter than those out of most other waters. Hope that helps.
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