What did I catch?

A
Anadromous
Hello all. I have been fishing streams for trout since I was a teenager, and am now a recent convert to the pursuit of steelhead.
This the first large fish I caught when targeting steelhead. I was in a rush to release this fish, and didn't really give much thought that it could be anything but a steelhead. I did notice that the roof of the mouth was white when I removed the hook. I pulled up the picture on my phone and am now wondering if this could be a chinook or coho.
Can anyone offer an opinion?

IMG_20201224_141939886.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
Admin
Admin
Whatever it is, congratulations! Nice catch. )
 
troutdude
troutdude
Good on you for quickly releasing that fish!

White mouth/jaw = Coho.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
P
Pni_fisherdude
Chinook 100%
 
  • Like
Reactions: O. mykiss, Snopro and Admin
Admin
Admin
I have no idea but will say steelhead just to cover all the options. :)
 
  • Haha
Reactions: troutdude
TheKnigit
TheKnigit
I am in the Chinook boat also.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
A
Anadromous
I never looked a chinook in the mouth before and I expected the roof of the mouth to be black, hence my confusion, but I do think it looks like a chinook. Thank you for the replies!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
B
BrandonBeach
Jack Chinook
 
  • Like
Reactions: rogerdodger and Admin
Irishrover
Irishrover
Chinook based on the that back. The black mouth is variable as they age and it's the gum line that needs to be black. I dug up an old picture of two chinook from B-10. One is a up river fish on the other a lower river fish. The lower river fish was loosing the distinctive black jaw line. Just my humble opinion.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
jamisonace
jamisonace
Chinook jack
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
C
Chrisd1990
Definitely a chinook jack. 100% not a steelhead or coho. Doesn't matter what the mouth looks like. Its a male and the coloring would be very different if it was a coho jack.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
S
supertodd
Chinook
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
copperjohn
copperjohn
king salmon
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
C
cchinook
Jack , nook .
 
  • Like
Reactions: Admin
Grant22
Grant22
Anadromous said:
Can anyone offer an opinion?
The white gums is a sign that it is a coho but that fish is 100% a chinook. Usually black gums=chinook and white gums=coho but their colors get messed up and distorted when they start spawning and after they spawn. Chinooks have much larger spots than coho do.
 
  • Like
Reactions: troutdude and Admin
brandon4455
brandon4455
Jacks can be tricky, I’ve seen some odd ones. That fish is definitely a chinook you can see the black gums in the bottom jaw, but I’ve caught many small/ jack cohos that color up a bit different than you’d typically see on adult fish and similar to that chinook. Always check the gum line. Not the actual mouth of the fish but the gum line. And of course whenever in doubt, just let it swim.

Here’s a small coho I caught late November. You can see the white gum line
A8FB0AA2-98A0-42E8-882E-159D27721A7B.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: troutdude and Admin

Similar threads

bass
Replies
3
Views
914
fromthelogo
fromthelogo
bass
Replies
1
Views
503
troutdude
troutdude
bass
Replies
0
Views
395
bass
bass
bass
Replies
3
Views
852
Fummus
Fummus
plumbertom
Replies
15
Views
2K
DonF
D
Top Bottom