Is this a warmouth?

i've been catching these in the creek for a long time, and i've had this particular one in my aquarium for about 2 weeks.

i've always thought they were warmouth, but now that i look at it closer, i'm starting to think it might not be a warmouth, because its maxillary doesn't extend to the middle of the eye.

i still kinda think its a warmouth though. its got the stripes going across the cheek like warmouths do.

can you guys identify it?






thanks guys. i'm really unsure about this one.

location:
mechanicsville, maryland

Edited by dsaavedra, 09 January 2009 - 08:13 PM.

more pics:

Looks like a juvenile Lepomis gibbosus (Pumpkinseed Sunfish) to me.

Blake

Blake is correct, they are pumpkinseed. They are much more common in southern MD coastal plain streams than warmouth. Typically when we collect a warmouth there are only a one or two and there are very few other sunfish species, native and non-native.

thanks guys, i knew you could help me out.

ashtonmj, i see you are from baltimore, thats pretty close by maybe that's why you have been able to solve just about every question i've asked on this board so far

Yup, I live right by the airport. I also work for the Monitoring and Non-tidal Assessment Division of DNR. We do about 200+ stream surveys a year so I've got to be certified that I can ID fish with high accuracy/certainty. Glad you are getting some use and enjoying the free key. Not alot of states offer that, yet I think it's very underutilized. If you do ever come across some warmouth I'd like to know. We spent some time last summer down in your area looking for them in Zekiah Swamp.

yeah, that key is awesome.

in case you were wondering, these pumpkinseeds are coming out of persimmon creek. do you know any information about persimmon creek? if you do i'd love to hear it. so far i've caught 5 species of fish just from a section about 1/2 mile long.

as for you wanting to know if i've come across any warmouth, i have actually.

3 years ago i was fishing at Gilbert Run park on an school field trip and i caught a big warmouth (about 7") under a rock by the bridge. a friend took a picture on her cellphone but i never got the picture

i came back the next summer and i saw the same fish, under the same rock, but i was unable to catch it. this is the ONLY time i've ever come across any warmouth.

i'm 100% positive this was a warmouth. it had the red eyes, dark brown mottling, really big mouth, and stripes going down its cheek.

that's why i was excited to have warmouth in the creek, but it turns out they're pumpkinseed, which is equally as cool!

Edited by dsaavedra, 09 January 2009 - 09:51 PM.

Pumpkinseed and warmouth young can look a lot alike. Go by the size the mouth, even when they are quarter sized. Pumpkins have pretty small mouths. Carefully open their mouth and you can see how big it is really easily then even in small fish. There is no question, especially after you have seen both.

The reason for the similarity in tiny ones, both can have that purply sheen, irregular bars and dusky fins. But only warmouth have gaping maws and pumpkins tiny nipper mouths.

yeah, that key is awesome.

in case you were wondering, these pumpkinseeds are coming out of persimmon creek. do you know any information about persimmon creek? if you do i'd love to hear it. so far i've caught 5 species of fish just from a section about 1/2 mile long.

as for you wanting to know if i've come across any warmouth, i have actually.

3 years ago i was fishing at Gilbert Run park on an school field trip and i caught a big warmouth (about 7") under a rock by the bridge. a friend took a picture on her cellphone but i never got the picture

i came back the next summer and i saw the same fish, under the same rock, but i was unable to catch it. this is the ONLY time i've ever come across any warmouth.

i'm 100% positive this was a warmouth. it had the red eyes, dark brown mottling, really big mouth, and stripes going down its cheek.

that's why i was excited to have warmouth in the creek, but it turns out they're pumpkinseed, which is equally as cool!

Just happy to see a citizen getting some use out of it, and even better you've used it correctly! I've taught labs with it and grad students couldn't even use it correctly. Glad to see it worked for you, and you got found it.

We sampled Persimmon Creek this past summer actually, maybe even twice. We sampled it in 2004 also as part of the same US E.P.A. study. I can give you some information about it next week. There are definately more than 5 species depending on where you are.

yeah, that key is awesome.

in case you were wondering, these pumpkinseeds are coming out of persimmon creek. do you know any information about persimmon creek? if you do i'd love to hear it. so far i've caught 5 species of fish just from a section about 1/2 mile long.

as for you wanting to know if i've come across any warmouth, i have actually.

3 years ago i was fishing at Gilbert Run park on an school field trip and i caught a big warmouth (about 7") under a rock by the bridge. a friend took a picture on her cellphone but i never got the picture

i came back the next summer and i saw the same fish, under the same rock, but i was unable to catch it. this is the ONLY time i've ever come across any warmouth.

i'm 100% positive this was a warmouth. it had the red eyes, dark brown mottling, really big mouth, and stripes going down its cheek.

that's why i was excited to have warmouth in the creek, but it turns out they're pumpkinseed, which is equally as cool!

Warmouth seem to be pretty common at Gilbert Run State Park. I've fished there twice and have caught several both times I was down there.

Here's a pic from one I caught about two years ago.
 DSCF3272.JPG   70.65KB   1 downloads

ashton, i actually didnt find that key online, my natural resources management teacher gave me a copy and told me they were available online. i would LOVE to hear everything about persimmon creek when you get the chance!


element, that is a nice looking warmouth. i had no idea they were that common in gilbert run. i fish at gilbert run all the time during the summer months, for the past 3 summers, and i've only caught one. what do you catch them on and where?

Send me a PM with your email address. Even better to know they are being used by teachers, that's what they're for!

Karl, where else did you catch one last summer? Sorry for not getting a hold of you last night, long day at work.

ashton, i actually didnt find that key online, my natural resources management teacher gave me a copy and told me they were available online. i would LOVE to hear everything about persimmon creek when you get the chance!


element, that is a nice looking warmouth. i had no idea they were that common in gilbert run. i fish at gilbert run all the time during the summer months, for the past 3 summers, and i've only caught one. what do you catch them on and where?

I used night crawlers for bait. The warmouth that I caught were all hanging around down trees, which I think are to the west of the bridge that you were talking about. Warmouth love hiding under structures. Try fishing near any down trees, boulders, bridges etc. where it looks like there are good hiding places. You should see them come out of the shadows as soon as that night crawler hits the water. I'm sure you'll catch more. I caught some nice size black crappies close to those down trees also.

Send me a PM with your email address. Even better to know they are being used by teachers, that's what they're for!

Karl, where else did you catch one last summer? Sorry for not getting a hold of you last night, long day at work.

No prob man. I'm sure we'll have another party some time in the near future. For the record, I was servin people left and right on mario kart.

I caught two warmouth in the C&O canal, a couple of miles downstream from Great Falls. It's located along a section of the canal that has been impounded.I was pretty surprised, considering it was way out of their range that is shown on the MBSS fish distribution maps. Once again they were hanging out near some down trees. I guess they've either made their way up the canal, or someone decided to stock them years ago. I'll give you the exact location next time I look at an ADC map. The name doesn't show up on google maps for some reason.

Go Ravens!!!