It is a strain of the rainbow trout know as steelhead. This would be winter steelhead since they prespawn in the winter. Steelhead are an ocean run strain of the rainbow trout that get quite a bit larger than your standard rainbow. Much to many anglers surprise, they sometimes jump acrobatically many times when hooked. This fish is very salmon like indeed. They are not native to our great lakes, but are stocked to control alewives. One exotic species to control another!
We get two strains of steelhead that run the St. Joe River: Michigan Winter strain that run the river in October/November and winter over in the river and spawn in sping - we fish for them all winter and the summer strain which is also refered to as Skamania. The pic of me with the fish in the boat is a skamania and they jump as much as thirteen times. They are like grabbing a tazmanian tiger by the tale. The one of me in the creek is also a skam.
The winter strain come into the river bright chrome and the longer they are in the river the darker they get like the fish my son caught. They are a blast.
The salmon were stocked in LM to control the alwives as mentioned. The steelhead were origianly planted in rivers like the Muskegon to replace the brookies and grayling that didn't reposnd well to logging. They didn't realize the steelhead would migrate to Lake Michigan and return huge three to four years later. The salmon and steelhead fishing here is amazing and the St. Joe has some of the highest angler catch rates in the country.
Here's a double
There are times you will have four on at once in the river (madness). Below is a male (right) and female (left) - anyone know how to tell the difference?
BTW: sorry about the pics. The slamon will start running the Joe in a few weeks and then the steelhead after that - I am getting pumped!!!!! I'll stick to cichlids from now on,... promise