Does someone know what species of fish this is? I catch them fairly often in my cast nets on Eagle Mountain Lake in Fort Worth. They are always the same size. Their bodies are hard as a rock.

Logperch, a species of darter fish

1+

Thanks! That’s pretty interesting. I read up on it and it’s listed as being distributed in the Edwards Plateau region of Texas and lives in clear, clean water. They’re going to have to add a chapter to that because besides living in a lake in Fort Worth, it’s living in a lake so green that you can barely see 6” down into it…on a good day. Maybe these are the urban tough guys. 😁

As already been mentioned. Log Perch.

If you want to take the time, catch one and get pictures of all the fins out and send it to the USGS and they will record the information and update their site.

They’d send out some minnow-hugger. That person would verify that this little fish is endangered at its current location. They’d stop all fishing, boating, swimming, etc in and around the lake. I’m just an old fisherman who couldn’t live with himself if he were the one to spoil this little piece of paradise for everyone. I could however lobby for a backflow preventer installed in the river between Eagle Mountain Lake and Lake Worth. Below is a notice from the City of Fort Worth’s website.

“Specific consumption advice, Fish Consumption Advisory 45 (ADV-45), has been issued for Lake Worth recommending that persons should not consume blue catfish, channel catfish, and smallmouth buffalo from these waters”.