Among sports fishermen the talk is usually of trout and bass or the hyperactive crappie. Ultra-light tackle fishermen boast of their successes, rarely revealing that secret spot with the monster Brook Trout or the swarm of crappie when the season is already waning. They will curse the pesky sunfish that hit their flys or jigs; force them to waste precious time fighting fish they aren’t after. Among these unwanted denizens of lakes and streams there lurks an odd little fellow whose praises remain mostly unspoken, but it’s time for that to end. I speak, of course, of the lowly Rock Bass.

The funny thing about Rock Bass is that they’re never the fish a person goes out to target, they seem to just show up unwanted and get in the way. The reason for this is that they share habitat with both trout and other less finicky lake fish such as crappie, bream, and bass. If you do specifically go looking for them, you’d swear that they got a memo and promptly disappeared. These fish are pocket powerhouses. For their size they fight like champions and are a joy to catch with ultra-light equipment. You just have to know how to find them.

A Rock Bass is not actually a bass, it just sort of looks like one. It’s really a member of the Sunfish family, though longer and wider than a bream and colored a bit like a pumpkinseed fish. The mouth and head are definitely bass like, but the area around the pupil of the eye is red. Rock Bass prefer small to medium streams with rubble and gravel substrates and slow to moderate current. In lakes they like structure with bare lake bottom usually at a border between grass and gravel. They also like to hang out on the colder side of an inversion near steep drop-offs. They like to eat just about anything, and prefer a little movement from the bait. Try bouncing a small crayfish jig in near by, usually upstream or up hill from them. Alternately, a feathered jig or a larva will get their attention.

Finally, Rock Bass are a delicious fish. If you’re looking for a great pan-fry at the campsite you can’t do much better. Excellent in batter or plain with a little lemon these fish are meatier than their sunfish cousins. So, if the trout aren’t biting or you’re looking for a good fight on ultra-light gear, don’t overlook the under-rated Rock Bass.