19 replies to this topic

[olaf]

I'm not very well-versed in identifying minnows, darters, etc., so I don't know what I've filmed here.
This was shot with a GoPro on a long extension held in the current under the lip of a waterfall. I couldn't see anything in the water, but hoped there'd be a fish or two.
There are a couple Mottled Sculpins (very, very common in this stream), then a fish I don't know. Can it be identified from this video?

This is in a very clean, cold, wild creek in northeastern Illinois. Mid-April, 2015.

 

 

Thanks.

[Matt DeLaVega]

I just glanced at the photo, but instinct said fantail darter to me. Hope that helps.

[BenCantrell]

Is rainbow darter an option?  I see the dark saddles on it's back before and after the dorsal fin.

[strat guy]

Where was that at? I'm in northeastern IL and wouldn't mind seeing sculpins, never seen one before. Whatever that fish was, it was really cool.

[Isaac Szabo]

I'm with Ben. I also thought rainbow darter for the fish on the right.

[Matt DeLaVega]

I suspect Ben is right. I saw a dark pointy head and thought of fantail, but the saddles seem right for rainbow..

 

 Must be a nice cool stream, but sculpin are not uncommon in the state.

 

Oh, and the photo I saw originally is gone now and replaced by the video. Bet we can thank Michael for that.

[olaf]

Thanks, Michael!

 

And thanks Ben, et al.

[olaf]

One survey I have shows Johnny, Banded and Fantail Darters at that location (and Orangethroat elsewhere in the same creek). No mention of Rainbow Darters, but the sampling was done in August, so the species present might be different in spring. Plus, that survey was in 2002 or 2003, so things might have changed. Though this creek is very healthy and hasn't been altered much over the years, who knows what new sources of pollution have arisen in the last decade. It's surrounded by farmland and growning towns, though mostly buffered with trees.

[Matt DeLaVega]

I watched the video.  It is not a banded or fantail.

[olaf]

I'm with Ben. I also thought rainbow darter for the fish on the right.

I'm talking about the one that looks like it's striped black and white and first pops up around 16 seconds. The bigger brown one left of the central plants is a mottled sculpin, and the other mottled sculpin is on the right side of the plants at the beginning. (Or I could be totally wrong about them being sculpins. Hope not.)

[Isaac Szabo]

Yes, that's the fish I'm talking about. I'm fairly confident it's a rainbow darter. The pattern of dark saddles on the back looks very much like a rainbow. Like Matt said, it's not a Johnny, Banded, or Fantail. I'm not sure I can completely rule out Orangethroat though. And yes, you're right about the other two fish being sculpins.

[olaf]

I need to get a dipnet and get myself back to that spot as soon as possible, don't I?

I wish I could remember what species Uland and I seined there a few years ago at the same time of year. It was such a species overload that my brain shut down.

[BenCantrell]

I need to get a dipnet and get myself back to that spot as soon as possible, don't I?

 

If only there were hooks small enough to catch a rainbow darter with...

 

[olaf]

Even if there were (and I assume there are and you're being sarcastic), it wouldn't help me get one. I still can't make myself stop fishing and switch to microfishing, especially in that spot, where 5 species of redhorse, hogsuckers, white suckers, and a bunch of non-sucker species, including longnose gar, have been sampled (by others) or caught (by me).

I'd love to see how you'd microfish inside the torrent coming over the falls, though. (Not sarcasm: I'd like to see somebody engineer a solution to that challenge.)

Meet me there in June?

[Chasmodes]

I'd love to see how you'd microfish inside the torrent coming over the falls, though. (Not sarcasm: I'd like to see somebody engineer a solution to that challenge.)

 

 

I don't have microfishing experience, but plenty of fishing experience.  Assuming you could get small enough hooks and are planning to fish that exact spot, you could use plenty of weight, perhaps with a dropper and your hook/bait coming off so that the current pulls off the bottom a bit...since you would not be able to feel bites, then the solution is one that ice anglers have figure out -->  use your underwater camera to watch for a fish to inhale your lure then set the hook.  It works wonders on light biting fish through the ice.  You already have a camera rigged to watch and are half way to your solution!

[Chasmodes]

Oh yeah, meant to say, cool video!

[BenCantrell]

Even if there were (and I assume there are and you're being sarcastic), it wouldn't help me get one. I still can't make myself stop fishing and switch to microfishing, especially in that spot, where 5 species of redhorse, hogsuckers, white suckers, and a bunch of non-sucker species, including longnose gar, have been sampled (by others) or caught (by me).

I'd love to see how you'd microfish inside the torrent coming over the falls, though. (Not sarcasm: I'd like to see somebody engineer a solution to that challenge.)

Meet me there in June?

 

With only two rods per person in Illinois, it does make it pretty tough to decide what to fish for.  I feel your pain.  However, a few thoughts:

 

1) You could give microfishing a try for 15 minutes - rigging up a presnelled Tanago hook takes no time at all.

 

2) Rainbow darters are one of the most aggressive darter species I've encountered.  They will swim up off the bottom and chase your bait as you pull it away from them.  There are times when they won't stop attacking your split shot, which makes it tough to get them to notice the bait!

 

3) For high current, I use pretty large split shot, about the size of a big pea.  I've used as many as three of them for really high flow.  I put them very close to the hook - about an inch away - so the bait doesn't flop about in the turbulent water.

 

4) If I'm concerned that I won't feel bites, I just twitch the rod tip every few seconds on the off chance that the darter is just sitting there with the bait in its mouth.

 

Since you say there are 5 species of redhorse there, and I have only caught 3, then yes I will join you, haha.

[olaf]

Chasmodes: I don't have a camera that I can view while it's under there recording. It's a GoPro. I've looked (barely) for a wired underwater remote/monitor so I could do just that, but haven't found any solid info other than sales pitches and sites that no longer work.

 

Ben: I think I'll eventually get around to trying the micro hooks. I've been carrying them around with me for a long time.

[Chasmodes]

Yeah, the GoPro wouldn't do the job...I like the idea of how you use it because it could come in handy during cold weather.

 

But, a cool gadget that might work for lots of folks on here for many purposes that might also do what I suggested would be a mini undewater camera.  I use an Aqua-vu to ice fish but it would be too bulky for that application.  They do have micro cameras now that are about the size of a phone, but they're kind of pricy ($250).  Here is one of them:

 

http://www.cabelas.c...Y_SEQ_104664780

 

That said, it's much cheaper to buy hooks and just fish   

[Betta132]

Try using a pale bait and watching it closely. If the bait vanishes, assume it's been grabbed and pull. 

That or just pull it away now and then and see if something's on the other end.