Hi yesterday i was fishing and caught a balss that looked just like a large mouth except were its usally green it was black, it was about 1 1/2 pounds and didnt fight at all, the canal was very clear and is dead end on both ends most of the year, im in south fl. dose anyone know what it is or if theres something wrong with it?

i know that, and isnt it the other way around, all the other bass i catch out of there are normal color and i catch probly at least 10 a week

It might be a genetic thing. More and more fish are showing up around the country with black spots on their bodies, it might be just that.

ive heard about that and it didnt have spots the hole top of him was black, but u could be right on the genetic thing

Did it look a bit like this:





That bass was caught in really murky water.  Why it's so dark, I don't know.

above that black line it was BLACK, dark black

Did it look like this?

(This is not my picture)


(Picture from google images)

Abnormally dark colored bass are not rare.  I catch them quite often.

Largemouth bass are in the same family as sunfish, all of which will change colors quickly (in a few minutes) to best hide in their environment. If they are hanging around light green weeds they have a lot of that weed's color. Bass in deep water with very little light penetration will turn a very pale, ashy gray. In clear water with lots of light they will usually darken their "back" to match the bottom color, "expert" at camouflage. If you can see a bass in the water it probably doesn't feel threatened, but if threatened can change colors in a matter of seconds.

Thier called black bass for a reason.

Yes, they are sometimes called that, though that often confuses observers of them. In my area nobody calls them "black bass", but might use "Mossbacks" 'for a reason' or "Greensides" 'for a reason', if not "Bucketmouths" 'for a reason', or among a minority of local anglers "Largemouths". Fisheries biologists might use the term "black bass" a lot more accurately than most anglers. The reason is normally their darkest colors are olive green or dark forest green in most areas of their range. Nearly black spots and lines brought on the "black" in the nick-name. Actually "black bass" is the general name given for all temperate bass, including largemouth, smallmouth, spotted bass, and others. So if you say "black bass" you might be taken to be talking smallies or spots which have colorations similar to largemoughts.

Keep in mind color schemes to expect to aid in spotting bass. Those are based on their environment colors. If its surroundings are black then a largemouth might appear mostly really black above the lateral line. The belly is always nearly white, right? Anything below them looking up will usually see a light foggy haze, so the bass blends in, while anything above them will only see their back. Since bass look upwards and forward to feed, what's above and in front matters most. They survive largely by remaining camouflaged to their prey as well as predators.

Never herd anyone call a smallmouth a black bass only Bronze Bass. I fish mainly for SM and I have never seen one that is simiular to a LM. They are either Dark brown or Bronze in color at least in my state. Never fished for them back east.

I think that the term Black Bass is used more in state publications, for example the Massachusetts fish and game regs classifies both smallies and largemouths as black bass, but fisherman as far as I can tell rarely use the generalization. I think it might be just a scientific, species thing more than a looks thing.

There ya go, yet another reason "black bass" are not what anglers call them, but any textbook on fish biology will certify what we call "Bronzebacks" down here are listed among the broader family of "black bass". Coloration isn't a strong determinant (primary feature) of biological family, but arrangement of fins, scales, mouth, gills, eyes, bones, size, etc are strong determinators. A "fish key" used to identify fish species forces the user to learn all the anatomical parts and terms, which would best show why certain fish are grouped in the same "Family", though of different species.

Jim

It could be a suwanee bas or a red eye

suwanee bass 

red eye bass

Jeez let it go, a bass ia a bass, who cares what color it is green,black, bronze, or purple with wellow spots.
Thier fun to catch and thats all that matters

I'm one that pays a lot of attention to species. If I catch a smallie in the main lake while fishing for spotted bass I know to release it immediately, as any possession at all is illegal. If I'm fishing for bucketmouths and catch a spotted bass then I know to change lures better suited to get in on some spot fun unless in a largemouth tournament. Come to think about it there's really a lot more reasons type of bass matters to me, but that's maybe suited for another topic.

I agree, all are fun to catch, and the eating is fine. Our fish are very healthy for us to eat, free of contaminants, and abundant.

Jim