Freshwater Drum/Sheepshead?

[abc91686]

Hey everyone I was just wondering if my initial reaction to what this fish was was indeed correct. I caught a crayfish in the river and put it on my hook with a bobber about 4 feet above the bait and tossed it into a pool about 5' deep only 15' off the bank of the river. Let it sit for a while and actually saw the bobber go under from our horseshoe pits and ran down to fight the fish. I only have 4 lb test on the reel, so it was a really good fight. Its the biggest fish I've ever caught on the allegheny! I revived it after a photo or two and he just swam back off. For future reference are these guys any good to eat? Thanks for your responses in advance.

[allegheny river kid]

Yes that indeed is a sheephead. I know people that have eaten them, although i never have myself. Its supposedly a very white flakey meat, that being said i'm sure there are better eating fish in the river then the sheephead.

[muskyjerk]

It is quite common that your fish is called sheepshead in western PA but that is a misnomer. What you have is a freshwater drum. A sheepshead is a saltwater fish with buckteeth and markings not too different from a perch.
You may have heard the fish croaking. That noise is caused by a chamber in their body that resembles a drum which is where the name comes from.

[ppalko]

Fun fish to catch. I've caught several while smallmouth fishing in a variety of locations around PA. Most were on jigs.