Kankakee & Rock Creek mystery fish

[Eric Wiebe]

Hello everyone!  First time using the forum but I know someone will have an answer to this question.  I’ve gone to the Kankakee and Rock Creek twice this year and I’ve noticed that the river is inundated with a unique fish I haven’t seen before in the ten years I’ve been fishing there.   It has the body of a one or two pound trout but the head of something that looks like a carp.  They school and act like carp.  Someone said they were possibly buffalo or sheepshead smallmouth.  Any thoughts??  Thanks!  Eric

[John R. Flannery]

Both species of buffalo, smallmouth and bigmouth, have much wider bodies than a trout. Most species of sucker have a body that is somewhat similar in shape to a trout, and there are a number of species that are present in the Kankakee. Hard to tell without a picture. I have caught hog suckers, white suckers, redhorse suckers, even a few spotted suckers in Illinois rivers. Most tend to move in loose groups, feeding on the bottom and completely ignore artificial lures most of the time.

[Eric]

Sounds like a northern hogsucker. Google it.

[Eric Wiebe]

Thanks guys!  I do believe they are white suckers based on what I saw online based on your coaching.