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Snail or Flat Bullhead?

Started by Guest_SicklefinRedhorse_* , Jun 11 2014 02:13 PM

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14 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_SicklefinRedhorse_*

Guests

Posted 11 June 2014 - 02:13 PM

Hey all -

I am having an ID crisis. These are the best shots I have. Got this fellow from a stream within the Catawba Drainage in NC, can't remember the name. Ben Cantrell has the stream name. Couldn't easily get a anal ray count, was slippery, of course. Any other reliable way? I'm in need of a 100% ID confirmation before adding it to the lifelist.

#2 Michael Wolfe

Board of Directors

North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage

Posted 11 June 2014 - 02:22 PM

even if they are not the best shots, do you have any that show the chin barbels... that is one of the things I know folks will want to talk about...

Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin

#3 Guest_SicklefinRedhorse_*

Guests

Posted 11 June 2014 - 02:25 PM

I do have some. I'll post them this evening, as I am at the library.

#4 Guest_gerald_*

Guests

Posted 11 June 2014 - 02:33 PM

Flat BH has light chin barbels and a light front edge on the maxillary (long barbel at corner of mouth); contrasting with the darker back side.
Snail BH has dusky grayish chin barbels, and doesn't have the distinct light/dark contrast on front vs back of maxillary barbel.
I can't tell from your photo.

#5 Guest_Skipjack_*

Guests

Posted 11 June 2014 - 02:40 PM

If Greenwood edited and zoomed in on the photo, would you be able to tell from this angle?

#6 olaf

NANFA Member

Posted 11 June 2014 - 09:32 PM

When I zoom in, that barbel definitely seems to be light on the front and dark on the back. Could be shadow, I guess, but doesn't look like it to me. Of course, I know nothing at all about these species.

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#7 Guest_Moontanman_*

Guests

Posted 12 June 2014 - 01:15 PM

That is really a pretty fish!

#8 Guest_SicklefinRedhorse_*

Guests

Posted 15 June 2014 - 12:42 AM

Here's the rest of the pics I have of the same fish! I apologize for the poor image quality of some of these, my camera sucks in the evening.

Pre-photo tank shots, taken on Ben's camera. Note the lighter coloration:

Posted Image

#9 Guest_SicklefinRedhorse_*

Guests

Posted 15 June 2014 - 12:46 AM

Continued:

Post-photo tank shots from my camera. Note the darker coloration:

Posted Image

#10 Guest_SicklefinRedhorse_*

Guests

Posted 15 June 2014 - 12:49 AM

More post-photo tank shots with my camera:

Posted Image

#11 Guest_Moontanman_*

Guests

Posted 15 June 2014 - 05:48 AM

Nice pictures and an interesting fish as well...

#12 Michael Wolfe

Board of Directors

North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage

Posted 15 June 2014 - 07:39 AM

those last three are what you needed... now look in Fritz's book... light chin barbels make it a flat, also in that last on note that the biggest set of barbels look dark on top and look light on bottom in most of the other pictures... bicolored maxillary barbels is another characteristic of flat bullheads.

compare to the chin whiskers on this known snail bullhead