Rare golden largemouth bass, a ‘one-in-a-million fish,’ caught in James River
Jacob Moore may not have cashed in a winning Virginia Lottery ticket, but the angler’s recent catch in the James River was just as rare.
Moore, an Amelia resident, reeled in a golden largemouth bass — described by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources as a “one-in-a-million” catch — while fishing near Jamestown recently.
“Golden largemouth bass are extremely rare and most anglers have never seen them, let alone heard of them before,” said Alex McCrickard, the VDWR Aquatic Education Coordinator. “The fish is a product of a genetic mutation that alters the skin pigments called xanthism.”
Moore’s fish measured 16 ½ inches, and he took a few photos of it before returning it to the James River. Moore, who works as an arborist, was targeting largemouth bass.
“I was out there practicing for a tournament, catching a bunch of fish,” Moore told the VDWR. “I was on the lower James near Chippokes [State Park]. When I hooked into that one, I thought I had a saltwater fish on at first, but lo and behold, it was a largemouth! A very different largemouth, though. I haven’t seen anything like that before. I’ve seen bass with black spots, but I’d never seen an albino one.”
Largemouth bass are native to — and abundant in — southeastern Virginia waters, but they are generally green-shaded. The fish is described by the VDWR as “an opportunistic feeder” that eats other fish, frogs, crayfish, tadpoles, insects, small rodents, snakes and ducklings.
Jami Frankenberry, 757-446-2376, jami.frankenberry@pilotonline.com. Twitter @JamiVP.
