Is it possible for the adipose fin to regeneate? We caught a 6 or 7 pound hen yesterday. The adipose fin looked st if it had been clipped, and then grew back?? It had a lot of scar tissue and was exteremly deformed. The fish was released unharmed, but we did get a few good pictures, one of the adipose fin. If the pictures is clear I will send it to Bob and maybe he can post it. Just to see what the experts think?

How did the dorsal fin look? If the dorsal fin was beat-up and healed over (crooked fin, crooked rays, partially removed), its probably a hatchery fish. Growing up in a hatchery pond or raceway is always hard on the dorsal fin (other fins as well) and is usually a give-away if the fish is not clipped.

I've also caught hatchery fish that could be classified as 'the worst clip job ever'. I think these may be partially clipped fins that have regenerated. Like you, I let these go because I've heard of Gamies that interpret 'fully formed adipose fin' as 'any adipose fin'.

When fishing the native season, I have yet to catch and release a nate that didn't have a fully formed, undamaged adipose and dorsal fin.

An adipose fin can't regenerate, but a lot of times they aren't completely clipped or are missed entirely. I've caught fish with badly worn dorsal and/or caudal fins and intact adipose fins. These were obvious hatchery fish that were missed by the clipper. Not surprising considering the numbers of fish that are clipped each year. Your fish may have been one that got a botched clip job. Let's hope that the person who did it isn't a rabbi!

the people or machine that is clipping fins is having to deal with a fish that is 4-8 inches long, can you imagine the size of its little adipose. They or it must miss some.