I did read about this hybridization of tilapia. This tilapia was 2-2.5 pounds as measured by my 30# boga grip. Tilapia, and I believe intended to be Mozambique Tilapia, were once, several years ago, stocked in this 77 acre HOA controlled natural oxbow lake as an effort to control algae and/or excess aquatic vegetation. But as I think about it, there are a couple of ways water, and probably fish, from other bodies of water could find there way into this lake during certain events.
What got me thinking about it and what type these fish might be, they are very abundant in the lake, is the recent and ongoing cold weather and depressed water temperatures that goes with these weather events. Each species, from what I have read, seems to have a certain specific cold tolerance. Mozambique are the least tolerant of cold water, then Nile, then Blue.
I’ve been on some tilapia identification pages and counted fin spines and looked at caudal fin stripes and colors of fin margins and have gotten to where I’m clear I may never know what these fish are because there’s been plenty of gene exchange between the species since their introductions into non native waters like here in the USA.
I’m probably going to see some more tomorrow or the next day floating up dead from the water temperature that will be somewhere around 50 degrees. The lake is 12-14 deep at best. It’s supposed to be sunny and about 60 tomorrow and maybe that weather will rescue them for now. Nothing really cold and cloudy weather wise is on the horizon, but this winter thing is just getting started.