I've only caught these fish in the fast flowing and rocky creeks of Coosa Co, and I never have figured out exactly what they are. I've had many people give me definite answers, but unfortunately they are not the same answer. Most call them a Goggle-eye or Warmouth, but I don't think either answer is right.

The Outdoors AL site gives only 3 possibilities - Rock Bass, Shadow Bass, or Warmouth, but this fish doesn't seem to match up with any of the descriptions. It seems to be most like a Rock Bass, but they are not supposed to be in the Coosa system. This one has 10 spines in the dorsal fin and 5 in the anal fin. It's 7" long, and that's about the average size I have caught. I've never caught a bunch of them on one trip, but it's pretty common to catch 2 or 3 on a day trip.

So what is it?

A freak. A mix. Elifino. May be a shadow bass cause I don't recall ever seeing one.

Body sure looks like a crappie to me.

Rock Bass or a "Flier".

Warmouth hybrid of some sort.

A broppie

Looks like this to me

Looks like shadow bass. Cool catch.

Wonder how they taste.

I have thought for several years that they are probably shadow bass, but it doesn't match up perfectly with their description. It's more like the description of a Rock Bass, but if they aren't in the Coosa system it can't be that. It is certainly more like the shadow bass description than a Warmouth.

Thanks for the guesses.

They are very good! They have a sweet flavor and though they are never very big, I always keep them. I got a couple of red-eyes and a couple of spots to go with him, and they should make my wife and I a good meal.

Shadow bass

It's a fish, fry it up and it won't matter what kind. LOL

Long nosed carpet croaker

That’s right. If they weren’t meant to eat, God wouldn’t have made them out of meat.

A few smallmouth would make you a dam fine fish fry in addition.

And I have never caught one. It has occurred to me that I am not getting any younger, so if I want to accomplish that feat I might ouught to be planning a trip to do it.

So where I can go catch a smallmouth in a natural river setting? I know they caught them behind dams in the fall, but I'd rather fish a natural river. Is there such a place left?

Correct Stob. Perdido, Styx and Blackwater river's have them in Baldwin County.

I believe that the fish you are catching in South AL is called a Warmouth by the state. I've caught them from several creeks down that way and it is a different fish than the one in our rocky creeks up here.

http://www.outdooralabama.com/bream/warmouth

Nope PCP, it is not a warmouth. It is a rock bass. Perdido and Styx are swift up where you catch the rock bass. You have to tight line fish with heavy weights to get your bait down in the cover. I've caught warmouth/goggle eye all my life and they prefer slow moving water. Tensaw river system is full of warmouth.

I certainly don't mean to argue; I started the thread because I don't know the answer. If you just look at the description, I agree that it sounds more like a Rock Bass than anything else. But then the state says this about the Rock Bass:

>>>DISTRIBUTION: Rock bass are limited to the Tennessee River system in Alabama, but they could eventually enter the upper Tombigbee River system through the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.<<<

http://www.outdooralabama.com/bream/rock-bass

So if the Rock Bass is limited to the TN river basin, the fish in South AL has to be something different. Based on the descriptions at the state website, it's possible that there are Shadow Bass in South AL. I have fished that area a good bit many years ago and we caught lots of Warmouth, but I never caught a fish like this. It sounds like you have caught a fish down that way that you are sure is different than a Warmouth, so maybe it really is the same one we have up here. I hope AU_trout_bum will see this thread and comment. He studies Red-eyes for a living, so he oughta be familiar with the fish that share their water.

It doesn't really matter, but I have wondered what they are for about 40 years
__

PCP, I had forgotten, but Doug Darr is the Aquatic Education Coordinator for Alabama. I sent him a photo of a fish once and he identified it. He was very helpful. His email is Doug.Darr@dcnr.alabama.gov. He can probably give a definitive answer. (Shadow Bass, haha)

Sammich bass

I was gonna say "Goggle Eye", and I noticed that description says that's a local name for Shadow Bass (which I've never heard of).

What do you mean when you say rock bass aren't in the Coosa system?

IKB, follow the link a few posts above and it will take you to the dcnr web site. That is the info I was going by. They say they are only found in the TN system in AL, so that leaves out the Coosa. I think Goggle-eye is used by folks to describe any of the 3 fish we have discussed.

Blade, thanks for the info. I will ask him.

Well, Doug has retired, but apparently Kasie McKee has taken his position and she confirmed that it is a Shadow Bass. Nobody in Coosa Co is gonna agree with me when I call them that, but at least I know now.

Thanks for all the help in figuring out what it is.

I still think your fish is a rock bass, the way the spots line up.

Wading creeks in the metro Nashville area produce some big ones. There are actually some guides that specialize in it. I’ve said every summer for the past several years I was gonna do it but never have

Looks like a rock bass to me

My son has caught most of the species of bass.
Betcha he hasn't caught a shadow bass.

Here is a pretty big flier I shocked up not too long ago for comparison

I thought from looking at pictures that it looked more like a Rock Bass too, but the eggheads who decide such things say that the Coosa system doesn't have Rock Bass. Keep in mind that they used to say that the Shadow Bass is just a sub-species of the Rock Bass, so they are closely related and easily confused if you are just looking at them. They are much more advanced these days in being able to check the genetics of a fish and make the determination on whether it's a distinct species.

I have noticed a lot of variation in the colors of the Shadow Bass that I have caught over the years. I don't think they are any sort of hybrid, as some have speculated. This is a very common fish in the creeks in Coosa Co. We didn't have them in the creeks of Perry county where I grew up.

Brent, that is interesting on the wade fishing for smallmouth. I hadn't thought of approaching it that way.

I thought I had heard most every name for AL fish, but "Flier" is a new one for me before this thread. The one in the picture has a smaller mouth than the Shadow Bass.

That is one Big Flier.

Biggest one I have ever seen. World record is 1 lb 4 oz

Sorry for dragging around and missing this. As you already know, it's a shadow bass!

The authority speaks! Thanks

This is the fish around here that people will call a goggleye, warmouth, or rock bass, depending on who you talk to. This is a Escambia River, Tensaw River, Yellow River, etc fish and not a fish commonly caught in fast moving water and obviously not the fish described in this thread. just posting to show the difference.

There is also a similar shaped fish we catch in Lake Eufaula when night fishing for crappie in 20+ ft of water. It is a drab looking fish and they are never very large. But they have the same large mouth and body shape. We have never caught one in the daytime or in less than 20 ft of water. I have no idea what those are.

Always called those red eye bass. Not a warmouth but they have the same coloring.

Hey pcp, if’n you wanna wade and catch some smallmouth...any of the creeks north of hwy 72 in lauderdale county hold them. Some good ones too.

All this wade fishing talk and wanting to catch a rock bass made me and a buddy go October 1. Yes, they were biting. And, did not catch a rock bass!

Dang nice haul right there. Congratulations

Thanks for the info!

That would probably be the easiest way to catch one, instead of pulling a boat up there.

Oltimer, that's an impressive stringer of fish!

PCP, you got a shadow bass.

Daylate, that’s a green sunfish.

Oltimer, not trying to argue with you, but there’s been thousands of fish sampled in waterways all over AL and no rock bass in the rivers/streams down your way. There’s shadow bass, warmouth, green sunfish and fliers.

Agreed Mbrock. I just knew that the fish PCP caught was one that I have caught in Baldwin County all my life. It is a shadow bass. Next question, does the shadow bass count in the creel limit of bass or bream? And down here it appears that goggle eye is synonymous for warmouth.

That's a good question on creel limit. Matt will give a more reliable answer than me, but the dcnr website that shows the types of bream in AL has the shadow bass in that section. I think that's pretty strong evidence they count it as a bream.

Matt, thanks for the answer.

Elk River has smallmouth.