Fish ID - thick or thin?

[Jim Murray]

Mullet_Differences.pdf

Drawing by Dave Heward of the NMC

 

OK judging by the drawing my fish is *definitely* a thin-lip as the inter-fin gap is around twice the length of the dorsal. You can just see it in the photo.

 

I hadn't heard of this ID method before. Having said that my fish ID book says that both species have similar fin spacing. As this to me appears a fairly foolproof method of ID does anyone beg to differ?

 

Jim.

[FishingGuernsey]

 

 

 

Some pics to illustrate. The lips do it for me

[Jim Murray]

 

 

 

Some pics to illustrate. The lips do it for me

 

Aha.....FGs pics have proved the point....the NMC info is wrong...? Inter-fin gap on both species looks pretty identical to me......

 

Jim.

[Jim Murray]

Bad focus but this is the same fish....any clearer?

 

 

Jim.

[FishingGuernsey]

Thick lipped from that picture but I am not the expert round here...

[Jim Gibbinson]

The broad jugular interspace looks like that of a thin-lipped mullet. The lack of obvious papillae on the top lip also suggests that it's a thin-lipped - unless the lack of papillae is due to lack of photo definition rather than actual absence. The fact that it took bread is more characteristic of a thick-lipped, but bread-eating thin-lipped are not unknown, I understand.

 

Given the evidence of the photo, I would opt for it being a thin-lipped.