Gill-crackers....Super strain or just part of the freak show? (video)

[Bill "Musky" Modica]

Recently, my fishing partners and I have been catching some really strange units...BGxPS....BGxRES...GSxRES....and who knows what else is in the mix.....A proverbial fish orgy of sorts, which has produced some interesting looking fish....Does anyone care to speculate?

[John Sikkila]

Nice images Bill!.....They certainly do look to be a mix of sorts....I can see the green sunfish in em.....I've had similar past catches in drastic coloration also....I just recently caught (on flyrod) a "very" gray colored bluegill that doesn't seem to belong with the other fish at all.....

[Bill "Musky" Modica]

John, this fish has amazing color tones....the blue/grey is really outstanding, especially in a fish of this size.

[IceWarriorGill]

Hey Musky, Those are some beautiful lookin Hybrid Sunfish with some awesome color combinations!!! Way to go on some beautiful Sunfish!!!

[Peter]

very nice !!!! those are some cool fish.

Peter

[Bruce Condello]

I see gillcrackers.

I see gillkindseeds.

...and I see another strange fish. Almost looks like a warmouth mix.

Yessir....Welcome to the freakshow.

[PaPa Cheese-O]

Bill, Ive noticed the same strange colorations on the fish the last couple years on the Chain. Two years ago I caught 3 what looked like true redears. They were 9inches long and in shallow water with the gills spawning. we let them go and wondering if it is one big spawnfest with everyone pitching in where they can. WE do catch those grey gills quite often and wonder whats goin on. They all taste good but the colors are weird. I see by your pictures a spoon in shallow waqter still works well for you. Id like to fish with you one day. Take care.

[flytyerboy95]

Dang perty
and some SLABSSSSSS

[Rob Garner]

Bill you are one of the masters of the area as I hae been watching your videos for the last year and a half.May get out to geneva this week and hopefully let you know what I see out there.By the way some great specimens as always.I will be rocking the spoon when I get back to the G.

[Bill "Musky" Modica]

Rob, I haven't decided if I'll be fishing Geneva or Delavan this weekend....Delavan gills are off the beds, and are suspending over deep water....Geneva fish are bedding and are in 13-15 FOW.....If you find some beds, try dragging a 1/10 oz Swede thru them.....it was deadly last year at this time....good luck out there.

[blackhawks]

Rob, dropshot works great on Geneva, too. Good luck.

[Jim Gronaw]

Looks like some gillcrackers, at least one BG/GS cross and a pumpkinseed/warmouth cross. Some other mutants in the mix. Cool!

[Nathanael Deloach]

I Love the mutts, they have a great the variety in color, it makes the catch more exciting. Though there is defidently hybrid stuff going on there I am a little more conscerned with the fisherman not the fish :-).