Hi,

I apologize for posting this here if it is the completely wrong forum, but I did not find any other forum for i/d of fish.

I will be most grateful if anyone can please id the fish in the pics.

This was caught with shrimp at the Brazos Bend State Park, Old Horseshoe Lake, yesterday. Various onlookers threw out wild guesses like "hybrid between gar and carp" or even "snakehead". The park rangers took their book out but nothing matched and even they were clueless.

One of the park rangers thought it was red drum, but when we compare the pictures, we found that the head seems to be too pointed for a red drum.

The scale was tougher than bass, and normal knife proved inadequate for scaling. However, scale came off with peeler, and it was nowhere near as tough as Gar's.

Flesh was mushy and soft, still uncooked in our freezer, not sure how to cook it unless you guys help

Thanks in advance!

bowfin grennel

grinnel.....good catfish bait

Grinnel. Can't believe the park rangers couldn't tell you what it was.

I wouldnt eat that thing. Tastes kinda like a cross between mud turtle and old coot...

Bowfin, or "Grinnel" if you are from East Texas

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowfin

and yeah, don't eat that.

Lip em Park rangers need to go back to school if they can't identify a GRINNEL(bowfin) for you. Big heavy duty scales covering a catfish like skin. Teeth like a pike. They are in every East Texas lake. Fork used to be full of them, still there. Google them. One of the oldest prehistoric species in the world. Those beady eyed things will shred a spinnerbait!

I would be second guessing my park rangers that I've hired....

I caught one many years ago at Fork. Fought like a monster.

Wow! Thanks guys! I am surprised that I did not know about such a common freshwater fish, but then this shows how much I do not know!

Thank you for your advice on not eating it, but I am going to try I have already turned its flesh to cotton by washing it (some articles on the internet says NOT to wash the meat otherwise it turns mushy like mashed potato). So now I am going to make balls out of the meat and deep fry them!

Make ceveche out of it. Double dare you...

Choupique?

LOL

Park rangers couldn't identify? That's embarrassing..

Place the meat on cardboard, use sea salt - a heavy dose, throw a little bit of Zatarain's on to taste.

Quarter a lemon-don't squeeze, just lay the lemon on its rind in all four corners of the cardboard.

Dice an onion and pile it on anywhere, get a clove of garlic and mince it. Place it as you did the onion. Use a

vegetable oil of some sort and just lightly spritz over the meat.

Cook in oven for 34 minutes @ 300 degrees.
























Take out of the oven, throw away the fish and eat the cardboard.