Steelhead or trout?

[DerekWhipple]

Caught this fish in a river that gets summer steelhead plants. Took a swung muddler in a fast riffle. I initially thought it was a lake stocked rainbow that washed down, but the color was too silvery, and it had a large head. The lake fish usually are fat with a small head and mouth and have some amount of red in them. This one barely had a pink stripe, it almost wasn't there. I've caught a lot of "wash down" rainbows on this stretch of river, and none of them ever looked like this. It was 14 inches.

Steelhead? How long did it spend in the salt?

Edit: The fish was clipped.

 

[Dr. Magill]

SRC?
Picture is a little weak

 

[DerekWhipple]

It was as good as I could do without a net, sorry.

No slash, it's fin clipped.

 

[Stonedfish]

If clipped, hatchery steelhead plant that identifies as a resident rainbow?
SF

 

[Matt B]

If clipped, hatchery steelhead plant that identifies as a resident rainbow?
SF

I agree with this guess. It is not uncommon for planted O. mykiss "steelhead" to residualize and not face the sharks.

 

[dep]

come on.....
Atlantic salmon

 

[Porter2]

come on.....
Atlantic salmon

They only exist in Pass Lake.

 

[kerrys]

That looks more like a sea-run cutt than a steelhead or rainbow.

 

[O' Clarkii Stomias]

That looks more like a sea-run cutt than a steelhead or rainbow.

Definitely been in saltwater by the looks of those fins.

 

[Tom Butler]

Within any population some fish will express different traits, both physically and behaviorally. West side, east side, after eating well all summer this is the time of year those tweeners seem to show themselves. I've long thought they go away to feed, maybe not quite the full monty, then come back, kind of like jack salmon, just didn't do the full deal.
Beautiful fish.

 

[Smalma]

I would rule out the fish in question being a sea-run cutthroat; in fact caught a similar fish this week in Kerry's home water that was definitely a rainbow.

Are my eyes getting too old or is both the dorsal and adipose fins largely missing? Can see all the other fins in the photos. Highly likely this O. mykiss is of hatchery origin.

An interesting aside in this issue of hatchery steelhead smolts become resident rainbows is the Chamber's creek winter steelhead based on some genetic work appears to have lost the ability to residualize. The result of decades of selective breeding?

Curt

 

[G_Smolt]

I can't see enough detail on the fish to be certain either way, but... In the first pic, it looks like the maxillary extends past the back end of the eye, which is a pretty good way to differentiate cutthroat from rainbows. The spots and spotting pattern "feel" a bit cutthroat-y, but spots aren't the best to key out bows and cutts. Not sure if WA still plants Cutts (with clips), either...there used to be a TON of them, straying all over the lower Columbia systems.
If you get another one, stick yer finger in its mouth and feel the back end of its tongue. If it has teeth back there, it's a cutt.

 

[Rob Allen]

Clipped = steelhead.. call it a 1/2 salt fish. Or maybe one that residualized and survived.

 

[JACKspASS]

@DanielOcean

 

[DerekWhipple]

I thought about keeping it, but the other hatchery trout I've caught and kept in this section didn't taste that great. It was really strong, pulled a bit of line off of a 7wt spey rod. I wish I was fishing my 4wt that day.

I didn't think to check the tongue for teeth, but that would have meant it was a Cowlitz fish, which would be quite the stray. I've unfortunately never caught a sea-run in this pdx river.

I think I agree with Rob. 0.5 salt fish/quarter pounder steelhead.

 

[DerekWhipple]

@DanielOcean

He still hasn't caught one? I told him how to do it!

 

[Triploidjunkie]

Almost impossible to tell at that size without DNA

 

[Old Man]

It's probably a plant that didn't go out when the others did. Or it's a Steelhead Jack. It just didn't get the memo on when to go to the salt.