Cahaba Bass

Cahaba bass can be differentiated from all other redeye bass species by having 6-12 short and wide anterior vertical blotches followed by smaller spots. They can be differed from all species except Tallapoosa bass by the lack of red or orange coloration in their fins. As with most redeye, they are endemic to the Cahaba River system, so if you are catching a redeye bass in this river system, it’s most likely Cahaba bass. They do have a tooth patch and have a beautiful translucent green coloration to their fins and have much smaller white margins on their caudal fins relative to other redeye bass in the Mobile Basin.

The Cahaba River system is the smallest native redeye bass river system in Alabama, making the range of that species relatively restricted. The entirety of the Cahaba River drainage is located within the borders of Alabama meaning that Cahaba bass are found in Alabama and nowhere else in the world!

As with most endemic species restricted to small ranges, Cahaba bass distributions have already been significantly reduced from their historical ranges due to habitat disturbance from industry, development, and sedimentation from its proximity to Alabama’s largest city, Birmingham.