#mud sunfish

[amaltheametalweld]

So there have been a few new additions to the fish tank. The creek near my house dried out and all the fish trapped in a shrinking puddle went into my porch bucket.

Most of the shiners died anyways they either jumped out or got eaten by the 2 little long ear sunfish. There are three darters left that I brought inside to the 20 gallon after realizing that at least one of the fish was predating on the others.

Honestly I was moving them quickly trying to keep them alive sice they were essentially trapped in a mud puddle. So they went straight into the bucket no counting no species id-ing nothing.

The darters are now healthy and impossible to catch. But the sunfish are back in the larger river.

So now there's 3 native fish in my tank. Two enjoy the tong feeding and one would rather just pick off snails. So they seem like they'll be thriving even if I can't get them netted to save my life!!

World's luckiest sunfish. Saved from the August sun and dropped into a buffet with two feedings of fish food a day and all the little fish he could eat going back to the river. Yes he looks distorted by the jar and the wierd lighting but it's the best photo of him!

[thatmexisaurusrex]

Hi!

A no pressure ask game to make the tags less depressing lol.

Rules: Share a snippet from whatever you’re currently working on, and then tag 5 people.

Okay so not only you, but @abarbaricyalp and @sunsetmaidenwrites both tagged me for this! Sorry it took a few days, but here's my response.

I feel like so many people have already been tagged, but just in case 🤔 : @funsized-loser @plantswithme @exbex @bisamwilson @downwarddnaspiral

Here's a @sambuckyhalloweenbingo fic I've been working on for the prompt "Transformation". It's sort of a High School AU where Sam finds out he might just have some magical abilities and Bucky's a merman. Enjoy the snippet! 🥰

*****

Sam knew there were stories.

He had heard them from his older brother, Gideon.

Tales of ghosts that wandered the bayous. Strange, hidden creatures waiting to snatch up whoever might find themselves out in the bald cypress and the slash pine. And it wasn’t as if Sam didn’t think about that as he wandered into the woods outside of his home; as he heard his friends cheer behind him in the distance; as he went to complete his dare.

There were strange things in the bayou, after all.

Stranger even if you go looking for that sort of trouble.

Sam probably shouldn’t have accepted the dare. But then again, Sam was nothing if not a thrill seeker. And something about the bayou? Well. He was drawn to it.

“You shouldn’t be out here.”

Sam.

Jumped.

He heard a snicker from – from somewhere.

Sam looked around only to find someone around Sam’s age in the most intense Halloween costume Sam had ever seen.

The guy had gills.

On his neck.

He had gills on his neck and fins where ears should be. He had webbed hands and what looked to be a fishtail taking up the lower half of his body that reminded Sam strangely of a redear sunfish.

He had pale skin that definitely had a farmer’s tan and this long, messy brown hair that fell almost to his shoulders. He had these piercing blue eyes that almost seemed too intense to look at, but were hard to look away from.

And.

An arm.

The young man was missing his left arm. It wasn’t something missing from birth, Sam could tell that it had been amputated up to the shoulder.

He stared at Sam, tilting his head with a smile filled with pointed teeth as he said, “This place calls to you too, huh?”

Sam hadn’t expected the boy to say that. Sam hadn’t expected himself to respond without much thought, “Yes. It does.”

The boy’s fishtail swished in the water – made Sam a little self-conscious of his own outfit. Cereal killer with little cereal boxes and a plastic knife wasn’t exactly on par. But that didn’t stop Sam from walking over to the young man when the guy gestured to Sam to come closer.

Sam sat down in the grass and the mud, feeling his jeans getting a bit soaked and messy from it all, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care.

No.

Not when this young man placed his hand on Sam’s cheek; made Sam’s heart – made Sam’s heart stutter. Not when the young man looked into Sam’s eyes as if peering into Sam’s very soul.

“Oh,” breathed the young man, “I feel it. It’s magic. That pirate queen.”

Sam laughed.

Because.

Everyone knew that story. Everyone in Delacroix, at least. The Wilsons came from a pirate queen. A woman who had settled near Delacroix long ago and protected it as a safe haven. Some said she had gifts, magical abilities, but Sam always knew that those were exaggerations of whatever was true.

“That’s how you flirt?” asked Sam, a little bold now because, well, the guy was gently cradling Sam’s face in one hand, “I’m guessing you know me. I don’t even know your name.”

“I wouldn’t said I know you. I just – I know the feeling. Most would know it. This is your domain. A name’s a bold thing to ask of me, though, I – I can’t find it in me to say no,” said the young man, and Sam wondered how into character this guy was, “Bucky. Call me Bucky.”

Sam snorted.

“Bucky. The mermaid?”

“Merman,” huffed Bucky as if a little peeved, “But I suppose you’re not wrong.”

“Sam,” said Sam with a smile, “I’m – I’m Sam. If you didn’t already know.”

And.

And Bucky seemed to blush. Blush more than Sam had ever seen anyone do before, the redness creeping down to Bucky’s chest.  And Bucky seemed hypnotized; by Sam’s smile; by Sam’s name. And that was making Sam want to do more here. Want to be bolder.

“A name back,” whispered Bucky, “I – I’ll protect it with my life.”

Wow, this guy was into the bit.

“Are you hanging out in the swamp for the rest of Halloween, or would, uh. Would you like to join me and my friends?” offered Sam, “They’re back at my house. I got, uh. Dared to stay in the woods for ten minutes and… my time is almost up. It’s a fun party. I promise most of the dares aren’t ‘hangout in the woods for ten minutes’.”

Bucky glanced directly past Sam, as if he could zero in on the distant sounds of Sam’s friends calling for him. Bucky tapped his fingers on Sam’s face, as if in contemplation.

“I, uh. I might need something in order to do that,” said Bucky, looking a little sheepish.

“Like what? Help up? I can do that. Probably hard to walk with that fish tail,” Sam said, ready to help Bucky up.

But Bucky stopped Sam from fully standing up; gripped Sam’s shirt.

Bucky looked nervous as he said a little embarrassed, “A… kiss.”

Sam.

Was not sure why this flirting was working, but it was definitely working on Sam. Maybe Sam had weird tastes. Shut up. You have weird tastes.

“If you insist,” said Sam as he fell down to his knees again.

And.

Faltered.

He had only kissed Leila Taylor and Riley Torres during spin the bottle once and he wasn’t actually sure if he was particularly good at it. What if Sam ruined the moment?

Bucky’s hand moved gently to behind Sam’s head.

“May I?” asked Bucky, his blush somehow a deeper red now.

Sam.

Could only nod.

And let Bucky gently guide his head as they kissed.

And Sam’s head was swimming. In yes and more and how have I not been doing this all my life?

And maybe Sam should have been a little more surprised that when the kiss ended, Bucky looked like an absolutely normal teen with no fins or fishtails and even shorts and a t-shirt on, but Sam had just gone through an experience.

“What happened to the costume?” blurted Sam, his brain not quite catching up as Bucky laughed.

[fishrights69]

My Top 5 GARBAGE fish that suck

Here we go again. After receiving a very high ammount of notes!! (61 UwU) on the last fish list, here's another top 5 no one asked for. I've tried to use the reasoning of ''all fish are good'' but let's be honest, we'd be better off without these. 5. Monkfish🙏

So these things are weird as hell. Their ugliness alone landed them on this list. Not only are they ugly as shit, but they're also mean motherfuckers that eat basically anything. They like to cover themselves in mud and just chill there until something crosses their path which imo is fucking lazy. Some people do eat them as a delicacy apparently(ew?). Props to them for getting over the looks. Ugly/10 5/10 for laziness 4.Hairy Frog Fish💇‍♀️

If you wonder wtf are you looking at, this fish is the living embodiment of that feeling you get when you find hair in your food. This girlie loves to swallow as it's mouth can open to make space for fish almost twice her size so don't go sitting too close 💦 Still, it doesn't take away from the fact that she looks like a mistake. 4/10 appearance 8/10 for the deep throating skills 3. Goblin Shark 👺

First of all, these sharks look like if someone designed a fish based on a child's drawing of a shark. Instead of going the terrifying route and choosing one of these pictures, I opted for a derpy yet still creepy photo. Besides being quite good at ambushing prey, these dudes still tend to eat man made garbage which further argues their position on ''the garbage fish top5™''. They also are basically living fossils since they're old af and most of their body is atrophied. 3/10 appearance 6/10 for still living so long despite everything.

2.Bony-Eared Assfish🍑

This fish is for all ass obsessed fuckers. Grilling this baby and enjoying it counts as eating ass. Some cool facts about him: -The bony-eared assfish has the smallest brain-to-body weight ratio out of all vertebrates. -Assfish are soft and flabby with a light skeleton (so like a real ass) As for personality, they are not what I'd call assholes. They are quite sluggish as they prefer to sort of flap around with short bursts of energy instead of swim. They don't do much besides that which makes them a very underwhelming fish despite the sexy name :( Apparently they were given this name to make up for how utterly boring they are. 2/10 appearance 1/10 Interest in them or what they are good for (spoiler, nothing)

If you're a fish enthusiast, you probably know what's coming at nr.1 🥁 🥁 1. Ocean Sunfish☀️

There are far, faar too many reasons for this fish to be on the first spot. Not only are they the dumbest fish in the whole world, but they also are not good swimmers AT ALL (wtf is with these poorly designed fish who cannot swim??). Scientists are still perplexed at how this fish continues to stay alive. If you want more shitty facts about them, here's a link to a very famous post trashing these bitches. BUT, I have my very own reason to hate the sunfish. One cursed morning, I decided to go get educated about animals and visit Naturalis, a museum in Leiden, The Netherlands. I was having a blast looking at all the beautiful animals showcased, along with the cool facts and atmosphere. I excitedly get to the aquatic creatures floor and mesmerised, I try to take in all the beauty. At the long corridor nearing the exit, I look around admiring the fish that were displayed. Thinking I had seen it all, I move further when I turn a corner and out of nowhere.. . . . . . . . BAM

this GIANT motherfucker, hidden in a corner makes it's presence known. I'm not kidding when I say this thing is huge. Here's a picture of the replica from another angle for size reference. As you can guess, I was legit extremely spooked and actually screamed. :( 0/10 appearence 0/10 fuck this thing. useless and it gave me a heart attack

BONUS: I'm sorry but I think I've tortured myself and you enough, so to make up for it, here's a cute fishy instead: (take him)

Alright thanks for reading and follow for more fish content. Suggest me some more top5's I could do, be it fish related, or whatever your mind decides to curse me with. Still need to cleanse yours eyes? My top 5 coolest fish

[fishyfishyfishtimes]

There's discourse about a creature wanting to be clean? As far as I know the only creature that likes being filthy is the pig. Even hippos like getting parasites removed and those are 2-ton homicide engines.

Oh! I assume this is in relation to sunfish fiscourse? I don't know if there is actually discourse about animals and their cleanliness habits, it is pretty universal among animals that they enjoy getting parasites, dead skin and other uncomfortable things off them. Sunfish included!

Oh, but I must correct one statement you made here, even if it was a joke! Pigs have a very good reason to bathe in mud, and they do it for the same reasons and hippos or elephants do! The mud protects their skin from sunburn and excess UV light and helps them cool down. They enjoy being clean too :D

[straightdragonsdontexistwdym]

Sandwing hybrid names

Sand/mud: quicksand, mamba, python, anaconda, kingsnake, bullsnake, diamondback, fossil, camel

Sand/sea: mirage, archipelago, island, heatwave, ray, sunfish

Sand/rain: Cactus, primrose, iguana, marigold, salamander

Sand/night: Scorpion, owl, fennec

Sand/ice: desert, frostburn

Sand/sky: magma, inferno, ember, ray

Sand/silk: orange, sandstone, yellow, gold, Sphinx,

Sand/hive: beetle, scorpion, whitetail, centipede, tarantula, millipede

Sand/leaf: marigold, primrose, cactus, agave, brittlebush

[alkalineark]

Fish in a Bucket

(Slenderman fluff Oneshot)

Minnie Gribsbee watched as the frog slid out of her hands and leapt onto the wet mucky ground, the creature fumbled through the creeping Jenny and partially submerged coontails until it gave one final powerful leap and kerplunk into the water like a heavy stone. The little girl squealed and waved her still pudgy hands excitedly, overjoyed that she had managed to catch the bullfrog. She had tried many times before but she had always either lacked the patience or was too easily seen by the amphibians to get close enough. This particular frog had wandered just far enough from the water that it hadn't mattered how brightly colored her dress was, or that she had practically tripped over herself, falling in the mud, and staining her brand new yellow sundress to catch him.

"Mr. Frog where have you gone?"

Minnie, no older then the age of seven, now stood knees deep in her family's private stock pond, the only ones to watch her being the terrified fish she had trapped in a five gallon feed bucket.

She had watched her father cast out the nets countless times and had always planned on doing it herself despite not being strong enough to lift the tangle of line. Minnie however, had always been the type to problem solve and had heard from her father that the fish spawned under the dock during the spring, and April had long left them. The girl hefted the nets off the edge of the wooden dock and tried to replicate what she had seen her father and older brothers do. She'd been so proud of herself when she finally managed to heave the net through the frog spawn and algee, ashore with four fighting bluegill wriggling in the ropes.

Now they swam in circles along the bottom of the bucket filled half way with dirty water from the pond and the occasional hand of the girl.

"One, two, three, four! Four fishy friends"

And while her bucket lacked the frog she considered it to be an abundant catch for the day. She pulled at the metal handle and struggled to inch the bucket up the bank and into the soggy grass, the underwater foliage reached out for her bare feet, slick and without traction to keep her upright Minnie fell backwards onto the bank while her halfway bucket tipped forward and back, drenching her front with it's murky remnants.

"Oh no! Fishies!" She cried. Sitting up in the mud to peek into the bucket where to her relief still held four very tired and frightened sunfish. The bucket turned out to be lighter with less water in it which made it easier for her to finish pulling it up the bank and through the field, leaving a trail of disturbed grass behind it.

The spring breeze began to blow, it caused Minnie to shiver and play a game all on her lonesome. A primal instinct really, to stay in the sunlight. It's warm glow flicked in the sway of trees that loomed heavily overhead. Every time she found herself out of the sun's watchful gaze she quickened her pace and went out of her way to find a sunny place to stand again. The thought to abandon the bucket had occurred one or two times but the determination to show her father far outweighed the temporary discomfort that crawled across her skin.

The long stretch of darkness that greeted her made her frown, her house was only 50 feet or so away but something deep inside told her to wait in this place. The sunny patch she stood in now was warm and made the fish in the bucket glimmer beautifully, the dandelions danced as if they were waving hello at her. She sat by the clump of weeds carefully. Listening to the bucket of fish slosh as she let go of the handle. Her small head turned towards the grand oaks and white ashes, they were beautiful this time of year and in the distance the foliage only spread further. The pollen in the air from them, was far less pretty. The cold and her allergies made strands of snot leak from her nose which had turned a rosey pink she wiped it on her bare arm, but only after looking over her shoulder to make sure no one was watching.

But, someone was watching, just not someone she had noticed. Hunkered down in the highlands thickets a young boy watched her with interest. Lured in by the sounds of splashing and her high pitched voice. At first, he had thought it was a predator. Some lowly scavenger ready to leap out at him and erase the possibility of competition. He had never reached an ...edge before. His parents territory seemed to stretch forever, endless valleys. Countless cliffs. Plenty of lakes and creeks. He had time to explore it all, and explore he did, each and every day. With or without his parent's watchful gaze. And why should he be watched? His mother and father had not once lost a fight he had seen. Not one. They were unkillable. Immortal. Surely he'd be the same if push came to shove. But it never did, because this thing Infront of him wasnt a predator. How could it be? They were just a hair smaller then himself. They looked like him too, if only subtly. The main differences he quickly noticed was that their head was strangely filled with features that seemed to morph and change with what he could only guess we're their emotions, and their claws were horrible looking! Blunt little nubs that wrapped around and held the ground colors! The more he looked the more questions he had. Minnie was oblivious to the male in the blueberry thicket and flashed her teeth at the fish before sprinkling the dandelion flowers into the bucket.

She had grazer teeth and yet she had capture prey? The meer thought of this confused him. From a distance, he couldn't see much but he most definitely saw no fangs on her. No fangs, no claws, a weird face. She wasn't even eating the prey! How did this thing survive? Confusion plagued the cub, he had been brought this creature many times by his parents to perfect his throat hold, he had felt their fragile throats and knew of the softness their bodies held. he had them shredded almost daily by his attentive mother in the nest. He had always assumed that in her dutifulness that she had bitten the claws and other harmful bits away from the bodies. It surprised him that they were simply this bare, this plain. With no defense and no offense… It seemed like their only use was to be eaten by others.

Minnie had heard the foliage shift drastically and looked up with a startle, the sharp fins of the bluegill ran over her hands slickly as her vision settled on a .. a rather odd fellow. Yes, very strange indeed. It looked like a little man in a onesie suit. Her eyebrows scrunched together in a worried expression as the strange boy stalked to her on all fours, how did he move so quickly like that, and why did it look painful? She didn't want to be rude, maybe he was from a neighboring property. The thought was promptly knocked out of her as he continued his approach, he was stark white, like snow on a winter morning and a newly bloomed daisy, and his face! He was horribly disfigured oh! Oh! How awful!

The changes in the weird slenderkin's face made him nervous. He had the upper hand, she was sitting he was on the move however that didn't make him any less wary. She could be protective of her cash* and while he was positive he could take the female in a fight. (He often scarfed his meals down to fight his brother's for theirs) he had never seem a live ….. whatever this was.

Cash* a collection of food, typically meat stored away in a safe place.

When Minnie stood, so did the strange boy. From all fours he stood upright and she quickly realized that he wasn't wearing a suit onesie… or much of anything it looked like. His body was a shiny black save for his hands, feet and head area which was white. His skin glimmered even in the shade. He reminded Minnie of the fat black racer they had in the barn. Her father had told her repeatedly to leave the snake alone but the small set of scars on her round arms was a constant reminder to her disobedience. She liked that he was shiny, and admired the red splotch that only just speckled his chest. She'd never seen a human like this before, maybe he was one of those kids that her momma had told her about. To be really nice to. Her mother had called them disabled, but he seemed to move around just fine. From her understanding they got picked on and didn't have many friends. She couldn't understand why he looked wild, he looked fun.

"Why, hello there! Um. You're on Gribsbee property now. I didn't know if you knew that."

Slender, didn't understand what she was saying. But the fact that she was squeaking at him in that high pitched manor couldn't be too good. What was she doing? Calling for her parents? He could do that too! >:0, maybe she was warning him not to get closer. That she'd attack. He focused on her, like he had been taught. Tried to read her intentions, he opinions. He could only read into her so much before the physical exhaustion hit him. She seemed�� friendly enough from what he gathered.

He came closer still. Drinking in her scent. She smelled familiar enough. Like water, and dirt but also salt and something different. It settled fondly on his pallet and made him feel at ease.

"Are you from the other side of the brush there? My momma says that it's dangerous to go in there without her. Is it not dangerous?"

The noises continued to drip from her mouth. Didn't she know they they had to be quiet? Quiet always. You talk to each other directly, with your head. It took energy, and tired them out quickly but speaking this way helped them practice and made conversations strictly important. He swiveled his head around, searching his surroundings thoroughly. They were out in the open. Which left them vulnerable, but also made seeing predators from a far much more easy.

"Do ya not talk? Well. I guess not. you don't look like you have a mouth. Say? How do you eat without a mouth? Does a doctor stick a tube in your belly and give you baby food? My daddy told me the doctors would do that if I didn't eat my dinner but they haven't yet"

Minnie sat back down and gazed into the bucket of water swaying the container back and forth so that they water made short lived waves and sunk the flowers to the bottom. Slender watched wordlessly.

"Do ya want to look at the fishies? I put flowers in there for them to eat, but I don't think they want them. I think they actually eat worms but those are icky. Why would anything wanna eat a worm"

Her tongue poked out from between her lips and her nose scrunched up in disgust, her face fell into a confused albeit lopsided smile as the boy got even closer, slowly settling himself into a sitting position similar to hers in the shade.

The little girl butt scootched her way over to him and drug the bucket along with her, still sitting in the warm sun.

Slender loomed over the bucket's edge, staring at the overstocked waters. The fish were a dull green brown. Aside from one which looked to have a touch of red and orange to him, almost copper. He reached his hand in, mimicing what he had seen the other cub do. Letting the fish bodies run again his claws and palms. It was a weird feeling, unnaturally so. He knew about fish, but it was hardly something his parents would bring home due to their size. He remembered being brought to a creek to forage for small crustaceans which led to him and his siblings to chasing fish in the waist deep water. They had difficultly catching them individually, and none of them seemed to have an interest in working together to corner the school.

"These are bluegill. They're a type of sunfish. But not that one! That one's called a pumpkin seed. The one with the red ears. I think they are really pretty. I wanna show my poppa but I think they are getting sleepy."

Minnie frowned and looked at the fish, which were sitting still now, only thrashing themselves in the water when their bodies touched one another or a hand.

Slender stared at her, and then the bucket and yet again, back at her. The prey was dying. Was that what she was saying? He let out a throaty bark. A chirp. He usually, only ever chirped at his parents, a very demanding and insistent vocal cue that said "I'm hungry!" Or "that's mine!" When she bared her teeth at him in a smile, he had had enough. His own teeth bared in silent aggression and his body reared on to his knees. He rushed at her, headbutting her and pushing her into the ground. The muddy, yellow cloth she had draped over her flew over top of her head and hands. Rendering her, in his opinion. Immobilized. She squeaked in what he only could interpret as defeat.

"Oh! Hey! That's not nice of you! Oomph" Minnie cried as she fell over rather unlady like. Her face grew red with embarrassment and her hands quickly splayed out to balance herself before smoothing over her ruined dress.

"Noo! FISHIES!" The girl shrilled and rushed to pull at the weird boys back. He was eating the fish! Wait.. he was eating the fish?

Her hands unclenched from him, as he turned around, startled and most likely a little defensive. His blank face sporting some rather prominent teeth and between them, the flopping body of a bluegill. He chewed it fast and without any manners before digging his hand through the bucket once more, the sleepy fish coming to life once more and swimming quickly in circles. They actually seemed to evade his grasp despite being in such a small space.

"You're not supposed to eat those! You gotta cook fish before you eat them silly."

When the boy ignored her and held another flopping fish between his long finger nails she took her opportunity to catch the pumpkin seed. She petted the half dead fish, and briefly wondered if she could run to the pond and throw him back in before he suffocated. His stilling body told her that he was already gone. Minnie looked at the fish, tears brimming at the side of her eyes. He was so pretty and she took him out of the water and now he was dead.. guilt ate at her insides as she pet the beautiful copper scales.

The only thing that pulled her from her sadness was the snort of the boy kneeling across from her. The bucket was empty, and he looked at her expectantly or atleast thats what she interpreted. He wanted the pumpkin fish. Smiling sadly she held her hands flat out to him.

"Well, at least he didn't die for nothing. If you are gonna eat him too. "

Rather then take the fish with his hands the boy lapped up the fish, using his tongue and teeth to take the body straight from her hands. She jumped a little. Why did this kid have sharper teeth then she did? He was acting like an animal, eating out of her hands like a horse would.

Slender looked into the bucket again, there was no more food. He tipped the bucket over, letting the water spill. Still no more food. He drank some of it, but the staring he received from the weird female slenderkin was concerning. She was making another one of those expressions.

"Um. Well. You can have the bucket. I guess. Maybe you can use it to catch more fish. I have to go have a bath. Goodbye!"

Minnie waved at the strange mute kid, turned on her heels and ran home, ignoring the chilly air that consumed her in the shade. It wasn't until she reached the porch that she looked back and realized she hasn't told the boy her name, or ask for his, but he was gone and so was the bucket.

Hello! If you've read all of this, omg thank you so much. Writing isn't always the easiest thing for me, but Ive had such a passion for it ever since I was young. This is the first thing on Tumblr I've actually posted that's completely my own creation (aside from a drawing or two reeeeeally far down there) I'm nervous but excited for any sort of feed back. Until then, Arkwork. :)

[panfishonthefly]

Surviving The Off Season

There is no other way to put it. If you are a fly fisher, winter sucks. Sure, you can trudge through the snow, dealing with your fly line frozen in the guides of your fly rod, and suffer the pitfalls of hyperthermia to catch a few sluggish trout. But what if your favorite quarry is a sunfish? I don't know about you, but staring at a hole in the ice just doesn't cut it for me. So how do you get through the off-season without going crazy?  

Well, there is always hunting, and many of us turn to it to keep us active in the outdoors when the fishing season winds down. But eventually, hunting season winds down, and we still face weeks of winter. Here are a few things to keep you occupied until things warm up again.

Organize Fly Boxes 

By the end of the season, my fly boxes are a hot mess. There are big holes where favorite patterns have been used up. Dry flies stashed away in nymph boxes, and streamers stuck in the boat carpeting where they were left to dry on that summer smallmouth trip. Poppers and foam bugs seem to be tucked everywhere. By midseason, I don't even fish out of my boxes anymore. Instead, I usually tie a few flies the night before a trip and stash them in an old Altoids tin. By the end of the season, I have accumulated quite a collection of these small containers stuffed with flies of all types. Now is the perfect time to give them a permanent home.  

It doesn't matter how you organize your flies, but having some system in place can save time on the water. So whether you organize them by season, species, fly type, or location, do it in a way that makes sense to you.

The winter months are also the ideal time to purge those boxes of patterns you don't fish anymore and those flies that have been chewed to an unrecognizable form. All those newly created spaces in your box can be filled with new patterns to try in the upcoming season.

Restock Fly Boxes 

Whether you tie your own or buy them, winter is a great time to get those fly boxes back in shape. After re-organizing my fly boxes, the holes become pretty obvious. As a fly tier, now is the time when I make my list of all of the flies I need to tie to replace those used up during the season. If you don't tie your own, that list serves as a shopping list to work on during the off-season. Visiting your local fly shop during the winter is welcomed by shop owners who often struggle to pay the bills this time of year. So stop in and fill up those fly boxes for the upcoming season.

Clean, Repair, and Replace Your Gear

Every season, some piece of gear is lost, broken, or worn out. This year it was a pair of waist-high wading pants I wear during the cooler months when roaming the shores of my favorite ponds. I noticed the leak in late spring but never addressed it. Then, as I was getting ready for the upcoming season, I came across the waders and remembered to send them out for repair. Unfortunately, they could not be repaired, but there was still time to order a new pair for the upcoming season.

This is also the time of year to clean and inspect my fly lines. Lines used in warmwater will benefit from regular cleaning due to the dirt, mud, and algae associated with this type of fishing. Fly lines don't last forever, and I seem to go through them faster fishing in warm water. Any line that shows signs of wear, such as checking or splitting, or doesn't float as high as it used to gets earmarked for replacement.

Next on the list is replacing all of my tippet material. I tend to carry my tippet material where it is exposed to sunlight while fishing, and I store it during the season in my truck, where it is exposed to high temperatures during the summer. UV light and high heat will quickly break down tippet material, so whatever is left over at the end of the season is replaced with new (or at least properly stored) tippet. I will also go through my assortment of leaders and replace what is needed.

Prep your gear for the upcoming season. 

Once fly boxes are restocked and lines and leaders have been squared away, I will get my gear together, so it is ready to go when I need it. My larger boat and kayak have equipment permanently stored in them. So I give them an inspection to make sure everything is ready to go with the arrival of warmer weather. For most of my walk/wade fishing, I fish out of a sling bag or waist pack. So I take the time to go through those packs and ensure everything is up to speed and adequately stocked with everything I need.

Scout Out New Waters

Winter is typically the time when I will scout out new waters. I keep a running list of places I want to try, and during the colder weather, I will visit them to determine the best routes to get there, ramp conditions, nearby amenities, etc. If a spot shows promise, I add it to the list of new places to try in the spring.

Tie flies

My favorite winter activity is tying flies. I replace flies lost or worn out during the previous season and spend a lot of time developing new patterns or tweaking existing ones. Although I tie flies all year long, the bulk of the fly tying occurs during the winter when my favorite waters are encased in ice.

[fishyfishyfishtimes]

Already ahead of you friend! You can find me in the comments talking in short about different means of reproduction, fish sex changes and egg-caring behaviours, all the classics!

Since I like talking about fish I’ll share some more anyway. Fish reproduction is endlessly fascinating and just as diverse as fishes themselves are! Before spawning can even begin some fishes may need to migrate to their place of origin, up to thousands of kilometers even (salmon and trout are most well known, my beloved sturgeons and eels migrate long distances as well and other fishes prefer to spawn in their home of origin too)! There’s fishes who will take part in courtship and have specific rituals before mating, some species will mirror each other’s movement or perform complex dances to impress mates (mandarinfish and mudskippers come to mind), some fishes who will use vocalisations for wooing (midshipmen fish), and some species build nests or other structures to impress a partner (damselfish, that one(?) species of pufferfish). The aforementioned nests can be pretty much anything, fish like gouramis and bettas build bubble nests, some fish steal other animals’ burrows or dig their own into mud or sand, some fishes nest in shells or crevices, and some can be masterful builders that create their nests from sand, rocks, sticks, seaweed and algae, and whatever other items are available! There was one species that even used its own artificial glue to form a nest, I made a fish fact on them, but I forget the name.

Some fish species will spawn in groups, some species will spawn with a singular partner, perhaps in an aforementioned nest or just a safe structure (or, heck, just open water or the bare bottom, some fish aren’t picky), some fishes will even mate for life with one specific partner their whole lives like seahorses! Specific behaviours that take place during mating are a bit less well known to me, but I do know that in some fishes it can involve biting, like with some sharks (blue shark females even have thicker skin to withstand the males’ bites better). When fishes do reproduce they can give birth to live young, who either develop inside their mother in their own eggs (livebearers) or receive nourishment from their mother in the form of something else (many sharks and rays), or they can “simply” lay eggs. Caring for young is a whole other interesting topic, as while many fish will do no parental care there are also many who fiercely guard their eggs! It’s often the father of the young who aggressively defends the nesting site and oxygenates the eggs via fanning or delivering water to them, or even holds his eggs inside of him for protection in the case of mouthbrooding and the seahorses’ pouches (which is a whole other fascinating topic!!) but some species will exhibit both parents taking turns in caring for the eggs and defending the nest! Some care for their babies only in the egg stage, and some will take care of their babies even after they’ve hatched. Even if no parental care is involved, egg development can still take wild turns. There are fishes whose eggs develop when they’re floating down rivers into the ocean, adapting to saltier and saltier water as they go!

And man, this isn’t even getting into the more out there modes of reproduction… like the anglerfishes, where the males fuse into the females and become a part of them! And what about whalefishes, where the male is small, large-nosed and mouthless and must find a female through smell on the limited energy he gained as a juvenile? Even my beloved sunfish is a special case as she can lay up to 300 million eggs at once!!! More than any other animal!!!! How insane is that?? There are so many places to take inspiration from, so many different fishes who have very unique tactics for having babies and then keeping those babies (…at least, a part of them) alive! There must be other ways of reproduction that I didn’t even know to mention due to how out there some are… but I hope this is useful information nevertheless to those who wish to learn a bit on fish reproduction!

anyone got a special interest in fish???? i need to learn about how they mate and spawning and while i love watching random fish documentaries i would really like some specifically about the aforementioned topics

[tboy-summer-fun]

almost every omori ship name i think

omori x aubrey - omobrey

omori x stranger - nightshade / eclipse

sunny x basil - sunflower / bunny / photosynthesis / サニバジ / dandelion

sunny x aubrey - sunburn / sunbrey / throwing knives / sunbow / sunbun

transfem sunny ( luna ) x aubrey - burning moon

sunny x kel - suntan / sunkel / caprisun / sunny d / orange joe / cactitulip / cactulip / nutterbutter

transfem sunny ( luna ) x kel - lunartan

sunny x mikhael - sunbleached

sunny x mincy - sunsketched / sketchbook

sunny x kim - starburst / meteorite

sunny x cris - sunfish / sunbath / evaporation

transfem sunny ( luna ) x cris - tidal waves

sunny x rowan - chocolate sunflower

hero x mari - heromari / picnic basket / heroine / rosemari / cookie sandwich / mario / picnic sandwich / picnic blanket / macaron / cookiepan / roselily / picnic prep

hero x bowen - egg mcmuffin / breakfast / shortbread / frenchtoast / herobiscuit / ham sandwich / boro / herwin

hero x daphne - cookiedough

kel x aubrey - kelbrey / baseball bat / baseball / sunrise / tanburn / homerun / knuckle brass

kel x basil - cactiflower / flowerbasket / cauliflower / morning mud / stutters / citrus

kel x kim - gumball

kel x mincy - paintball / paperball / kelcy

kel x cris - beachball / surfing

kel x mikhael - goldrush / kelvick / mavel

basil x aubrey - photobomb / fireflower / swordflower / bushfire / watering can / batsil / spring break / autumn / forestfire / hotsoup / strawberry shortcake / weed pulling / lawn mowing / garden shears / basilbrey / aubrasil

basil x aubrey ( bunyn ) - bunnybomb

basil x charlene - camomille tea

basil x kim - kimsil / honeysuckle / peppermint / spikemoss / sugarshot

basil x mikhael - melonbread / brick

basil x cris - waterlily

basil x mincy - mintybloom / mint

aubrey x kim - kimbrey / cotton candy / jawbreaker

aubrey x cris - sea bunny / hurricane / boiling waters

aubrey x mincy - paintsplash / idol / minbrey / graffiti

letter-room!aubrey x stranger - shutterbomb / dustbunny

kim x cris - swedish fish

kim x mincy - edible paper

mari x daphne - breadbasket

mari x bowen - cupcake

space boyfriend x fish boy - bioluminescence / boy²

space boyfriend x rococo - spacecoco / starry night / rocketship

space boyfriend x sweetheart - spaceheart / divorice papers

space boyfriend x perfectheart - starkissed

space boyfriend x perfectheart x mutantheart x roboheart - stitchedheart

sweetheart (or perfectheart idk) x molly - jellyfish

sweetheart x medusa - jellydonut

mincy x cris - paperboat / watercolors / paint water

aubrey's dad x sunny's dad - runaway moon / belt & slipper / locked and loaded

prettyboy x jay - prettyjock

omoriboy x aubrey - light newspaper

-

sunny x kel x basil - sunkissed / sunnydew / sunkist / desert flower

sunny x kel x aubrey - beach day / sunscreen / arson

sunny x aubrey x basil - burnt sunflower / burnt sunflower seeds / flowerbed / aloe vera

sunny x aubrey x kim - melted candy / rockcandy

sunny x kel x basil x aubrey - solar system / sunny days / sunshine / war crimes

sunny x kel x basil x aubrey x kim - milkyway

basil x aubrey x kel x sunny (basically solar system but resolves around basil) - bouquet / allergy season

basil x aubrey x mincy x kim - gasoline flavored taffy

basil x aubrey x kim - cinnamon

basil x aubrey x cris - waterwheel

basil x aubrey x kel - summer breeze / honey-kissed liquor / molotov cocktail / tax evasion

aubrey x mincy x cris - sea bunny portrait

aubrey x kim x mincy x cris - rose scented watercolors

daphne x hero x bowen - hero sandwich

daphne x hero x bowen x mari - ice cream sandwich

shattered!omori x letter-room!aubrey x stranger - ink smudge

updated - 11/9/23 sorry for little updates! im not as interested in omori as i was when i started this list :<

[crimeronan]

ure so very right about darius always. hes autistic methinks. he needs some earrings to really round up the character design. do u have any hcs that u havent mentioned yet on this blog?

oh boy do i

i have a fic in the planning stages atm about darius and the past golden guard that has about a million hcs, here's one:

darius was pretty much the only person who flat-out refused to address the golden guard by "sir" or other terms of respect. instead he came up with increasingly elaborate and incoherent nicknames, as he does

examples if we'll pretend the boiling isles has similar taxonomy to earth:

goldie

goldfish -> sunfish -> carp -> crappie [purposefully pronounced "crappy"]

goldenrod -> ragweed -> sentient sneeze

when darius first saw the golden guard without the mask he shouted "GOLDILOCKS" and prev gg was like "I FUCKING KNEW YOU WERE GOING TO SAY THAT YOU LITTLE SHIT-" while wrestling darius into the mud.

[yes-i-write-fanfiction]

What kind of sea creatures would the Transformers Prime bots be?

Optimus would be a koi.

Ratchet would be a coelacanth.

Bumblebee would be a tiger barb.

Bulkhead would be a giant mud crab.

Arcee would be a mantis shrimp.

Smokescreen would be a pygmy sunfish.

Wheeljack would be a crystal jellyfish.

Ultra Magnus would be a blue whale.

[xjumbled-up-brainx]

This is a project I’ve been crafting for a while through my re-run of everything english dubbed Octonauts. A brand new A-Z list of EVERY SINGLE CREATURE THE OCTONAUTS HAVE EVER MET:

*Vegimalese*

What’s that Tunip, you and the Vegimals want to learn about even more creatures?

*Vegimalese*

Well, let’s go again!

The Octocomputer will show you all the creatures the Octonauts, and Octo Agents, have met, on both land and sea!

Cheepa Cheepa!

Anaconda 1

Albatross 2

Anemones 3

Angler Fish 4

Arapaima 5

Adele Penguins 6

Alligator 7

Amano Shrimp 8

Anteater 9

Arabian Camels 10

Armadillo 11

Bowhead Whale 12

Barracudas 13

Beluga Whales 14

Black Caiman 15

Blobfish 16

Blue Whale 17

Blue-head Wrasse… 18

Bottle Nose Dolphins 19

Bat 20

Baboons 21

Barnacle Goose 22

Bear 23

Black Giant Squirrel 24

Black Winged Stilt Bird 25

Blind Shrimp 26

Burmese Python 27

Brittle Stars 27

Bombardier Beetle 28 and

Bomber Worms 29

Capybara 30

Carrier Crab 31

Catfish 32

Conocono Crab 33

Conocono Crab?

Coconut Octopus! 34

Colossal Squid 35

Comb Tooth Blenny 36

Cone Snail 37

Cookie Cutter Shark 38

Cuttlefish 39

Convict Fish 40

Caiman 41

Caterpillar 42

Cave Fish 43

Cave Shrimp 44

Chameleon 45

Clam 45

Chinstrap Penguins 46

Chinese Mitten Crab 47

Christmas Tree Worms 48

Coelacanth 49

Coral Polyp 50

Coral Snake 51

Crawfish 52

Crocodile 53

Crow 54

Crown of Thorns Starfish 55

Dormice 56

Deer 57

Damselfish 58

Dogfish 59

Decorator Crab 60

Duck-Bill Platypus 61

Dwarf Lantern Shark 62

Eel 63

Electric Eel 64

Elephant 65 and Elephant Seal66

Elk 67

Egyptian Vulture 68

Emperor Penguin 69

Fiddler Crab 70

Frogfish 71

Fire Ants 72

Flamingoes 73

Flying Fish 74

Flying Fox 75

Fruit Bats 76

Giant Clam 77

Giant Comb Jelly 78

Giant Isopod 79

Giant Spider Crab 80

Giant Squid 81

Giant Grass Carp 82

Giant Pacific Octopus 83

Giant Panda 84

Giant Weta 85

Golden Coral 86

Golden Mole 87

Giraffe 88

Garden Eel 88

Gray Whale 89

Grey Reef Shark 90

Grouper 91

Guard Crab 92

Gull 93

Great White Shark 94

Gulper Eel 95

Hammerhead Shark 96

And Harbor Seal 97

(Inhale hoo inhale hoo)

Harlequin Duck 98

Harpy Eagle 99

Hippos 100

Hoatzin 101

Honey Badger 102

Hornbill 103

Hourglass Dolphins 104

Howler Monkeys 105

Hyenas 106

Hermit Crab 107

Humpback Whale 108

Humphead Parrotfish 109

(Slower) Humu-humu-nuku-nuku-a-pua-a! Haha! 110

Ice worms 111

Iguanas 112

Indochinese Tiger 113

Immortal Jellyfish, 114

Jellyfish 115

Jaguar 116

Jawfish, 117

Kangaroos 118

Kea Parrots 119

Kelp, Fish 120

Leatherback Sea-Turtle 121

Loggerhead Sea-Turtle 122

Lemon Shark 123

Longfin Eels 124

Leopard 125

Lions 126

Lion Fish 127

Lions Mane Jellyfish 128

Long Arm Squid… 129

Leafy Sea Dragon 130

Mangrove crabs 131

Mantis Shrimp 132

Martens 133

Microbe 134

Monarch Butterfly 135

Mound coral 136

Mountain Goats 137

Mud Skipper 138

Moray Eel 139

Mimic Octo-Pus! 140

Marine Iguanas 141

Manta Ray 142

Mana (Mana?) Mana (Mana?) pause. Manatee…! (Clears throat)3

Narwhal 144

Needlefish 145

Nile crocodile 146

Nile monitor lizards 147

Nine banded armadillo 148

Nutria 149

Okapis 150

Omuras whale 151

Orca 152

Oarfish 153

Octopus 154

Prowfish 155

Pelicans 156

Polar Bear 157

Pilot Fish 158

Parrotfish 159

Piranhas 160

Porcupine Puffer 161

Porcupine 162

Puffin 163

Pangolin 164

Pikas 165

Pin-tailed whydahs 166

Poison dart frog 167

Pygmy 3 toed sloths 168

Quino checkerspot butterflies 169

Queens-land-Lung-fish 170

RedRock Crabs 171

Reef Lobsters 172

Remipedes 173

Remora Fish 174

Rainbow blanket octopus 175

Rats 176

Raven 177

Red deer 178

Red eye tree frogs 179

Red fox 180

River Dolphin 181

Rock climbing gobies 182

Ruffed grouse 183

Sand grouse 184

Sand viper 185

Screaming piha 186

Seals 187

Sehuencas water frogs 188

Squid 188

Skinks 189

Skua bird 190

Skull Spiders 191

Snail 192

Spinner dolphins 193

Suckermouth catfish 194

Sun bear 195

Sunflower Star 195

Sunfish 196

Surfing Snail 197

Sailfish 198

Sardines 199

Salt-water croc-o-dile 200

Sea gulls 201

Sea squirts 202

Sea tulips 203

Sea Otter 204

Sea Pig 205

Sea Skater 206

Sea Snail 207

Sea Snake 208

Sea Sponge 209

Sea Urchin 210

Sea Horses 211

Siphonophore 212

Slime Eel 213

Snapping Shrimp 214

Sperm Whale 215

Spook Fish 216

Sea Star 217

Surgeon Fish 218

Swordfish 219

Shovel Nosed-Guitar Fish 220

Swell (sigh) Shark (sigh) 221

Snot Sea (panicked) Cucumber! 222

Tiger shark 223

Tokay Geko 224

Toucan 225

Tree frogs 226

Tree lobsters 227

Tree snails 228

Trout 229

Turtles 230

Tulum cave remipede 231

Tube Worms 232

Triggerfish 233

Tor-pedo Ray…! 234

U: You? Me? Me? You? V!

Vampire Squid 235

Vent Shrimp 236

Vole 237

Watchman goby 238

Water dikkops 239

Weasel 240

Wisent 241

Wolves 242

Wood louse 243

Wolf Eel 244

Whale Shark 245

Walrus 246

Water Bears 247

Weddell Seal 248

Whale Louse 249

White-Tip-Shark 250

X: Xylophone solo!

Yellow bellied sea snakes 251

Yeti Crab 252

Zebra 253

Zebra fish! 259

Dadadada!

[chilirasbora]

Mud sunfish | Acantharchus pomotis

X, X, X

[themarshmellow]

This one needed some context, which is that I succumbed to the mud and got my wallet wet while out in the field, but I guess I at least caught a fish! A red-bellied sunfish :)