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Hello everyone! While out on Echo Reservoir yesterday (2/12/19) my buddy pulled up this unique fish in the attached photo. Ive never seen anything like it during my time in Utah.
At first glance it appears to be some type of chub/sucker, however, it is unlike any i've seen before. It was approximately 18" and bit on a worm while fishing the bottom in about 40ft. of water. On our way off the ice we showed the pics to another angler who suggested we create a post on BigFishTackle to potentially positively identify the fish. Thanks and I look forward to participating on the forum in the future.
Ive added another photo to help out, definitely not a Utah Chub.
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That appears to be a Utah Chub.
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I initially believed the same. I don't think thats the case, notice how prominent the red features of the fish in the photo are vs. any Utah Chub photo online in addition to the mouth which is way more similar to a sucker variety. Also, it just seems like the size of the fins proportionate to the body don't align with that of a Utah Chub. Ive caught hundreds of Utah Chub and never caught one that looked like this fish. I could be mistaken.
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I think that is a sucker.
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[quote pookiebar]I think that is a sucker.[/quote]
I am with pookiebar. Looks like a light colored sucker.
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Welcome to BFT
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Also the front of the dorsal and front of bottom fin don't line up.....
Those colors are strange.
Crazy idea but is it even possible a chub and sucker could have crossed? Are both species known to be in Echo? I dont claim to be any kind of expert on Echo and havent had time to research
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I don't know the possibility of a hybrid/cross but I definitely know that both chub and sucker aren't listed as fish that are in Echo... It has me scratching my head. Hopefully someone that frequents the forum has a better explanation.
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Lots of suckers found in the Weber River.
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We've caught more than a few sucker soaking a worm while slinging flies on the Weber and again I've never seen one that came close to the appearance of this fish. The head shape is completely different.
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I think it’s a Mountain Whitefish, plenty of those in the Weber
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Certainly has a couple a couple Mountain Whitefish characteristics. The head is much more similar to that of a Mountain Whitefish but the fin placement is very different, along with coloration. My father owns property up chalk creek, the Weber is his playground and he slightly suggested that also. Looking closer at images available online its easy to eliminate that possibility.
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Red horse sucker.
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Heyyyy! That is definitely the culprit!!! Is that species native to Utah? If so, has anyone ever caught one?
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Yep, you sure did, sorry! I was so excited to see that you figured it out that I didn't take the time to absorb your words. Thanks for the help!
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No answers, just observations.
On a chub the front of the dorsal and pelvic fins should align. They do not on your fish. Conclusion: it can't be a chub.
Don't forget that fish often display different colors at different times. Think of kokanee. Spawning, stream vs. lake, season, age, size, water temperature, etc. can make a fish look different from the ones in the identification photos.
Redhorse suckers are not endemic to Utah nor have they been introduced (to my knowledge). Why would they be? Of course common names are often applied to species apart from their real scientific names. (I have seen mule deer in Arizona called blacktails and channel catfish in Utah Lake referred to as blue cats.) On the other hand, species have shown up where they shouldn't be before. A crappie showed up in an early-twentieth-century survey in a stream running off Navajo Mountain, long before Lake Powell was there.
I would suggest that you submit it to the DWR fisheries people. They probably know the most about the species present and their identification.
Just my two cents.
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[#0000FF]Definitely not a chub, whitefish or Utah sucker. A remote possibility it could be a lost June sucker. (see pic)[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF][inline June_Sucker.jpg]
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[#0000FF]But having caught (and eaten) the popular redhorse suckers in the midwest I gotta vote for that. (see pic) Although how it got into Utah waters is a mystery.[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF][inline smallmouthredhorse.jpg]
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