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bluegill576

Fish Mystery

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This past week when I was in Colorado fishing and caught this big fish in the Taylor River. It looks to me more like a lake trout than a brown, but the closest reservoir downstream of it is about 30 miles away. I know that the eyes got all white because of the high temperatures, but can that change the look of a brown trout to look more like a lake trout. I asked some people in local fly shops and they thought it was a brown. What do you guys think? Thanks

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Looks to be like a brown that is about two seconds from death. I've seen big browns like that during the fall spawn that look similar and have lost just about all of their fight and are making one last run. The upper Taylor does hold big browns as well as the well known rainbows. That said the speckled pattern does look a lot more like a laker than brown. I'm curious what others will say.

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The tail appears to be more forked than a brown, and the spot pattern looks more like a lake trout. My guess would be a Splake (cross between a Lake Trout, and a Brook Trout.) What is the name of the lake down stream? Look up the Splake in Colorado, and see if is stocked in the drainage. They a usually stocked in lakes, but that doesn't mean they stay there.

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Definitely a char of some kind - true trout have dark spots in a lighter background. My guess is it's a dolly varden. (bull trout) You won't find a laker 30 miles from deep water.

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Looks to be like a brown that is about two seconds from death. I've seen big browns like that during the fall spawn that look similar and have lost just about all of their fight and are making one last run. The upper Taylor does hold big browns as well as the well known rainbows. That said the speckled pattern does look a lot more like a laker than brown. I'm curious what others will say.

It could have easily been close to death because the water has been unusually low and higher water temperatures, but it was in a tailwater that was still pretty cool.

 

The tail appears to be more forked than a brown, and the spot pattern looks more like a lake trout. My guess would be a Splake (cross between a Lake Trout, and a Brook Trout.) What is the name of the lake down stream? Look up the Splake in Colorado, and see if is stocked in the drainage. They a usually stocked in lakes, but that doesn't mean they stay there.

 

The name of the lake downstream is the Blue Mesa Reservoir. I believe it is the largest body of water in Colorado. There are no stocked fish in the drainage. It is all wild fish.

 

Definitely a char of some kind - true trout have dark spots in a lighter background. My guess is it's a dolly varden. (bull trout) You won't find a laker 30 miles from deep water.

Interesting idea, I didn't even notice the light spots on dark background. That's true, I am pretty sure its not a laker.

 

I think I'm going to send the photos to some fish biologist and see if we can get a better idea of what this thing is.

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Here is the problem. Im pretty familiarwith that area and so although I will likely be corrected by someone with more knowledge there should be no splake in blue mesa except by fluke. Itis possible that some of the high lake splake stockers worked theirway down from above taylor res but thatis quite a journey. I would think it is more likely for a rouge laker to go that far up stream instead. Either way i am no expert and am very interested to hear what DOW may say.

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Interesting catch for sure, especially if that is a laker at this time of year which my money is on.

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looks snakey like a laker i think laker, considering iv seen a few bulls out west of canada id call it a laker or a splaker! thing looks toast lol poor dude

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I don't fish trout but I never heard of a Bull Trout. Can somebody explain?

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They're a char, like lakers and brookies. Bull trout and dolly varden used to be considered one species, but in recent years, DNA analysis has shown that there are differences. Generally speaking, dolly vardens are found in coastal watersheds and bull trout are found inland. For fishing purposes, they're about the same. The mystery fish is a bull trout. Bull trout populations are severely depleted in most of their range in the U.S., which is why you don't hear much about them any more. They can get pretty huge - I saw one chasing kokanees a few years back that had to go 14-15 pounds.

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Colorado has never been in the historic range of the Bull Trout (Salvelinus confluentus.) They are in the same genus as Lake Trout Dolly Varden, and Brook Trout. There is only one reference that I have found to stocked bull trout in Colorado, and its not in the Taylor River drainage. Some information and the normal range of the Bull Trout can be found here.

 

Bull Trout information

 

I will stick to my original guess, until Bluegill gets a DNA test done (you are going to do that, right?)

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Not a bull trout. I've caught a lot of them. Bull trout have no spots on the dorsal fin.

 

I'd go for a very sad looking laker or splake.

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