Tag: FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute

Crooked catch is a ‘shocking’ discovery by biologists in Florida

Florida wildlife biologists conducting an electrofishing survey of Silver Glen Springs made an odd catch that resembled one from a few weeks ago.

Florida wildlife biologists conducting an electrofishing survey of Silver Glen Springs made an odd catch that resembled one from a few weeks ago.

The biologists captured a longnose gar that featured a distinct bend in the middle of its body.

“Unlike the bull shark with a spinal deformity that we shared a few weeks ago, this fish likely got its interesting shape from a spinal injury at some point in its life,” the FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute stated on Facebook.

The crooked longnose gar measured 2.7 feet and weighed over 10.6 pounds.

“With their razor-sharp teeth and armor-like scales, longnose gar may look scary, but they are no threat to humans, and they play an important role as an apex predator in many of Florida’s freshwater ecosystems,” the FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute stated.

While biologists caught the longnose gar in a net while electroshocking the waters of Silver Glen Springs, located between Jacksonville and Orlando, a fisherman caught the juvenile bull shark with the crooked body near Titusville, Florida, took photos and released it back into the water.

“The shark appears to have some form of scoliosis or spinal deformity affecting the vertebral column,” the FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute stated. “While the condition is rare, our team has encountered similar anomalies in other shark and bony fish species.”

Top 10 bass lake in Florida features a rare golden largemouth

While conducting electrofishing surveys at Lake Tarpon, fisheries biologists made the rare discovery of an xanthic largemouth bass.

While conducting electrofishing surveys at Lake Tarpon, fisheries biologists made the rare discovery of a golden-colored largemouth bass with yellowish fins and tail.

Lake Tarpon, a 2,534-acre Fish Management Area in Pinellas County, Florida, is said to have an “excellent” largemouth bass population with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission fisheries biologists rating it as one of the Top 10 bass lakes in the state.

Biologists regularly sample bass by electroshocking areas of the lake. They typically find bass among the weeds which rim the shoreline.

As for the golden largemouth, FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute described it as an xanthic largemouth bass.

“Xanthism, an uncommon yellow pigmentation in an animal, is typically a result of a recessive genetic mutation similar to albinism,” the FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute Facebook post states. “In this case, the black pigments (melanophores) are suppressed, allowing the expression of yellow pigments (xanthophores). Although this trait is fascinating, it can make these fish more visible to predators, which might explain why specimens like this, particularly of this size, are considered rare.”

Below is a photo of what the typical largemouth bass looks like:

The prized fish presumably was released back into the lake, which is the standard practice when conducting surveys via electrofishing.

Photos courtesy of Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and Wikipedia Commons.