Help Identifying A Unknown Fish

[GobyMaster]

Okay, here's the fish (I know the picture sucks, the dumb fish wouldn't stop moving)

Here's a picture of a lot of eggs the fish was protecting:

The fish was about 4-5 inches long, and it was colored tan with a blue-gray top half. It was extremely active and protective of its eggs. Any help would be nice. . .

I live in Lincoln, Nebraska, USA, if that helps.

GobyMaster

 

[ArauraDiscus]

It's really hard, half it's head is under a rock.

 

[GobyMaster]

Yeah, sorry, the stupid fish wouldn't stop moving, and he kept hiding under the rock. It's the best I could get.

It looked carp-like, but at the same time it looked almost goby-like.

GobyMaster

 

[ArauraDiscus]

Yeah kind of cory-catfish/cichlid crossish looking. Too hard to tell though.

 

[roseykat5]

did u bring those eggs home too

 

[PRW1988]

looking at the fins, it seems to have an arm like thing instead of a fin... perhaps some sort of Mudskipper hybrid?

 

[Crossfc]

Mutant fish!

 

[GobyMaster]

did u bring those eggs home too

No, I didn't because I wasn't sure if whether or not taking some eggs home without the parent would kill the babies, because in some fish species, the fry and eggs are entirely dependant their parents.
I'll do some more research.

looking at the fins, it seems to have an arm like thing instead of a fin... perhaps some sort of Mudskipper hybrid?

I thought of that, but I'm in a temperate zone, not a really hot one, either. Wouldn't the mudskipper die before it could, you know, repopulate?

GobyMaster

 

[england]

a carp/rudd/dace hmmm could be anything

 

[GobyMaster]

Well, I searched the entire Nebraska Game and Parks website that had a fish guide and found nothing that even remotely looked like the fish I found. Maybe it's a new species!

GobyMaster

 

[PRW1988]

A better picture would allow us to try to find you a correct species... Also, I don't think it'd be a new species... Probably just a fish somebody decided to "drop" off