So called Leopard Muskie!

[muskie24/7]

Has anyone ever heard of a Leopard Muskie? Some guys on another site had pics. of one and this fish I caught last fall looks just like it! Mine was 43" just like the other guys! It looks like a nice HYBRID to me! Any input on this? I was fishing alone so this is the best photo I have!

Brian

[Ivan]

Hey Brian. Typically, I've heard some St Lawrence fish described as Leopard muskies. Dark in color with a Leopard looking spot pattern to them. Almost spots within spots. It's hard to tell without seeing the side of your fish, but yours sure looks like a tiger to me. It's pretty rare to see that defined of a patter accross the top of a fish unless it's a tiger. We've caught 2 pures at St Clair that had their spot/bar pattern go all the way accross the top of the fish but that's about all I can remember.

[Red Childress]

I will second Ivan's assessment of it being a Tiger/Hybrid..........sure would be nice to see the tail fins for a better diagnosis.

[muskie24/7]

I found another picture! I'm not sure if it will help or not. My guess is still a nice Hybrid!

Brian

[cband]

Still looks like a hybrid... Man, that looks like an old school boat there Brian..

[Ivan]

Tiger
100% positive

[muskie24/7]

cband, The boats a 1972 16ft. ouchita. that I power with a Go-Devil Motor! I've had it for around 25 yrs. or so. The river gets so low that I leave my Jet Boat at home and take Ol' Betsy out! The Muskies don't know if your in a Yacht or dingy! LOL! Either way I have access at all times! That boat has seen its fair share of fish I'll tell you that!

Brian

[gary2242]

Hi Guys & Gals

Here is some info on the Leopard Muskie

Back in the 1800s there was a rare subspecies called the Leopard Muskie. Building of dams and flooding lakes to create giant lakes flooded the isolated lakes with the Leopard Muskie and they interbred with more common pattern variations of Muskie like Clear and barred. You can still find Muskie with a Leopard Pattern, which is common in lake of the Woods, Eagle Lake, Wabigoon Lake, Dinorwick Lake and Lake St. Clair. These are all Leopard patterns that are washed out from interbreeding. Once in a while someone does catches a Muskie where the original Leopard Muskie genes are still dominant. I don’t know how to add a picture to this board so what I have done is add a link to a real purebred Leopard Muskie that was caught near Nestor Falls in 2009 on Lake of The Woods. This fish will amaze you.

http://www.musky.ca/leopardmuskie.htm

Gary