This is a very unusual looking bluegill. I got this image the other day from one of my buddies at the gym. He knew I loved to catch bluegill on the fly. He told me he had never seen a fish in this kind of shape. We were trying to figure out just what happen to this particular gill. One theory was the fish could have got caught in some type of net when it was small and develop the cut in its back from the pressure of the net string over the a period of time. I thought it was worth sharing. I told my buddies that you guys might be able to figure out what happen to this fish. You might say that this is the crossword puzzle of the day.
Little guy might be a lucky survivor of a pike attack. If so... he's a tough little fella!
ReplyDeleteJeff
ReplyDeleteGood assumption, if a bite had been on the lower part of the body it would have been harder for the fish to survive. Thanks for he comment
I think it's definitely a healed bite wound, but the predator in question might be debatable. I would also guess that it happened when the fish was rather young, because it looks so perfectly healed. I agree with Jeff, it could have been a toothy fish like a pike (or pickerel if in the South), but it could also have been a turtle. Turtles have a more shearing kind of bite than just about any other animal out there. If it was something with teeth... I guess it could have also been a Piranha. They can make a pretty clean bite.
ReplyDeleteBill, I think you've found a new species. The humpback Bluegill. You're going to be famous.
ReplyDeleteMark
Jay
ReplyDeleteI am in agreement with you as for the teeth. It is amazing that any fish could survive with that amount of meat taken out of its back.
Mark
ReplyDeleteWe all the agree the teeth was the culprit---as for being famous, I will apply that notoriety to a record brown, or kentucky spot.
I caught one like this last year on the Monocacy River in Maryland. My thinking on it and looking at this guy I would have it is a possibility is that they survived a talon from a bird. I dont have pike or anything like it in this river so I am guessing a bird tried to make him dinner.
ReplyDeleteJeff
www.gotflyfishing.blogspot.com
Another possibility, whatever took a piece out this fish, got a mouth full.
ReplyDeletealiens.
ReplyDeleteIt's actually quite common in piranhas, they have bite as here healed.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.angelfire.com/biz/piranha038/repairpira.html
http://www.angelfire.com/biz/piranha038/images/HB_regen3.jpg
Jimmy
ReplyDeleteThanks for the links, make sense. Thanks for the comment
Turtle is a good guess, but I'm with Jeff...
ReplyDeleteWe see this most often in waters that have birds of prey that feed on fish...like seagulls, osprey, herons, loons. In most lakes it is rare to see fish like this, but in other waters it is fairly common.
Dave
ReplyDeleteIt takes a tough fish to survive a bite like that. Turtle would be a good assumption. Looking forward to some of your posts on crappie. Thanks for the commnet