Brown Trout Question

[StoneFly]

So I havent caught too many brownies, not even too many smolts,...but I caught 2 today and they looked VERy different.

 

 

This one looks almost like a rainbow/Brown cross or do they normally look that way when they are this small.?

 

 

I found some Bigger ones hiding under logs,....

 

 

And Of course the shaker Rainbow...

 

 

Tried Frog hair for the first time and lost 2 in the 8-10lb range,...back to Drennan it is...lol

[BillM]

That top one looks like a juvenile resident fish. Second one is very atlantic salmonish like...

Edited November 7, 2009 by BillM

[l2p]

^^ i second billm, i do know that a couple of our water sheds have been recently stocked with atlantic juvi's so that second one could very well be an atlantic juvi. only way to tel for sure would be the tail, forked - atlantic and square would be a brownie!

[StoneFly]

Maybe the second was an Atlantic, tail is defnately more forked than the first one. The fish was about 8-9" I think and Im pretty sure they stock this river, anyone know what size they release them at?

[Paully]

that second one looks like a little rainbow?

[chandru]

is trout still open? i thought it was closed in sept? not complainin just want in on the action

[dave524]

The first one is a mature fish, the second one still has par marks, those vertical bars on the sides. There is a difference in the maturity of the 2 fish. Young rainbows also exhibit the same par marks before they smolt and migrate to the lakes.

Edited November 9, 2009 by dave524

[craigdritchie]

Both fish are brown trout.

 

Fish are no different than humans, in that there can be considerable variation in their physical appearance. Some are thicker, some are thinner, some have more or less pigmentation (aka skin colouration), and where some people may have minor differences in their eye colour, trout may have minor differences in their spotting patterns. You see two guys standing side-by-side fishing, and one's short, fat and bald while his buddy is tall, skinny and hairy as a Golden Retriever. Guess what? They're both the same species.

 

Same deal with these two fish. Just one is a little hairier than the other one.

 

Dave's point is also well taken. There is clearly an age difference between those two fish.

 

For what it's worth, the most fool-proof way to tell a brown from an Atlantic is to look inside its mouth. Atlantic salmon always have a thin, pointy tongue that looks almost spear-like, where browns always have a flat, squared tongue that looks more like a thumb nail with teeth on it. Things like colour, shape and spotting patterns are highly variable. The tongue is not.

[MCTFisher9120]

Maybe the second was an Atlantic, tail is defnately more forked than the first one. The fish was about 8-9" I think and Im pretty sure they stock this river, anyone know what size they release them at?

 

Myself and a few guys at Fleming rem eased a lot in Cobourg. Perhaps there?

[mbosh1980]

is trout still open? i thought it was closed in sept? not complainin just want in on the action

 

some areas have an extended season, and a few have year round. Check the regs for specifics.

I'm trying to get in on the action too but I keep batting .000

[Paully]

Both fish are brown trout.

 

Fish are no different than humans, in that there can be considerable variation in their physical appearance. Some are thicker, some are thinner, some have more or less pigmentation (aka skin colouration), and where some people may have minor differences in their eye colour, trout may have minor differences in their spotting patterns. You see two guys standing side-by-side fishing, and one's short, fat and bald while his buddy is tall, skinny and hairy as a Golden Retriever. Guess what? They're both the same species.

 

Same deal with these two fish. Just one is a little hairier than the other one.

 

Dave's point is also well taken. There is clearly an age difference between those two fish.

 

For what it's worth, the most fool-proof way to tell a brown from an Atlantic is to look inside its mouth. Atlantic salmon always have a thin, pointy tongue that looks almost spear-like, where browns always have a flat, squared tongue that looks more like a thumb nail with teeth on it. Things like colour, shape and spotting patterns are highly variable. The tongue is not.

 

 

How can you say these fish are both brown trout and then go on to say the best way to tell is to look at the tongue?

I cant see the tongue..

 

The second fish is a rainbow...

[Spiel]

The second fish is a rainbow...

 

The second fish is definitely not a rainbow!

[Paully]

The second fish is definitely not a rainbow!

 

 

Maybe an atlantic.....

[Spiel]

Maybe an atlantic.....

 

Maybe a brown.

[Paully]

I thought a small brown looks more like this..

[MJL]

Nice fish Stonefly.

 

Both fish are browns. Like Dave524 mentioned, they look like different age classes. Earlier this spring I caught a bunch of juvenile brown trout smolts with the typical parr markings while fishing for the bigger resident trout.

 

Here's one

[tonyb]

Craig makes a good point, it is much better to use specific characteristics to ID fish, rather than things that can change...like colour, jaw shape, etc.

 

Atlantics have a thin caudal peduncle (part where you hold when tailing fish) and slightly forked tail

 

Browns have thick, juicy caudal peduncles and square tails.

 

Rainbows always have a black edge to their adipose fin (if it hasn't been clipped haha), almost like someone oulined it with a Sharpie

 

 

Tony