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[Blood_Orange]

Caught a couple of trout in the last week that had me wondering if they were juvenile steelhead. The first one I thought could be a steelhead because it was a very nice size for the small urban system, and the second because it had a clipped adipose fin. I know that it doesn't make much of a practical difference as a C&R guy but I like learning about the small details in life 

I don't have pics of the first one, I was in the water and getting out my phone wasn't practical. I didn't know then to look at the tail but that's the advice I got a few days later.

The second one today I thought was a trout, then saw the clipped fin and thought juvenile steelhead, then looked at the tail and thought trout again. See pics below for the second one.

Is there a reliable rule of thumb? Is it the square tail? If not, what's your go-to feature? Thanks!

[RalphH]

from what I can see it looks like cutthroat;

color and the shape of the spots - rainbow/steelhead usually have more distinctive dots. Cutthroat often have x shaped spots or splotches such on the back of that fish.

[Wiseguy]

Looks like a cutthroat. Side pic would have been better. Learn how to ID your fish.

[Snagly]

Lots of us have difficulty telling our fish apart. Tail shape isn't going to help because steelhead and resident rainbows are more or less the same thing with differing lifestyles. So the fins will be identical. The first order of business is to see if you have landed a cutthroat. Red marks under the gill covers is a solid indicator (and for those with more expertise, marking patterns). Once you've eliminated cutties from the suspects list, I typically look at the coloration and spotting when distinguishing between large residents and small steelhead. Rainbows typically have more spots, darker spots and a more pronounced red stripe.

I mention this not because I'm an authority, but because I'd like to read the views of others on this forum as to how they tell'em apart.

[wildmanyeah]

I have the hardest time telling the difference between a pink and a chinook.  Slime and scale size seem to be the easiest way to tell the pink when size isn't the telling factor. In the ocean

[Blood_Orange]

It didn't occur to me when posting but it does look like a cutthroat from the top! The light makes it look darker and yellower than it was. See below for a photo from the side. I've caught cutties at the Stave before but this one didn't have the typical red throat.

Edit: Side note, I just Googled and found this article and wondering if they clip the fins on the hatchery cutties. The fish I caught looks an awful lot like the third photo down.
http://www.sea-run.com/winter-cutthroat-fishing-101/

[Dave]

Yes, some, if not all, hatchery cutthroat are clipped.  A quick and nearly foolproof method of telling the difference between rainbows and cutts is that a cutthroat's maxillary extends past the eye, like in your photo. 

[halcyonguitars]

I thought rainbow trout and steelheads were the exact same species, with differing behavior...

[RalphH]

I thought rainbow trout and steelheads were the exact same species, with differing behavior...

yes they are. In most cases size distinguishes steelhead from resident trout. However trout in some systems (like the Thompson Shuswap) can reach steelhead size. Such stocks also move about considerably, going to where the feed is.

Coloration, white edges on some fins, body shape are often used by anglers to identify large trout from steelhead but are not full proof.

[psd1179]

It is small trout in the photo:)
 The big trout and small steelhead probably are identical:)

[Blood_Orange]

It is small trout in the photo:)
 The big trout and small steelhead probably are identical:)

Oh for sure, not claiming that that fish is a big trout It just got me wondering about the original question. Especially after I heard about checking the tail and got even more confused.

Here's an old poster I have, as well as a Google image result of "steelhead tail". The tails aren't remotely similar until you get to the last fish (spawning female) on the poster!