'It's a fish of destiny': Vibrant orange smallmouth bass pulled from Muskegon River
Joshua Chrenko was on a family vacation when he reeled in a once-in-a-lifetime catch
By: Michael Martin

NEWAYGO, Mich. — Joshua Chrenko has been fishing his whole life, though he particularly enjoys the thrill of reeling in a smallmouth bass. It was the ultimate surprise back in the early morning hours of July 5, when he pulled a neon orange smallie out of the Muskegon River.

"I've caught a lot of smallmouth, and it's kind of like what I like I dedicated my hobby life to doing... So, it was special for me because I recognized how rare it really was."

It was around 5:30 a.m. near his family cabin along the Muskegon River in Newaygo. After just a handful of casts, he felt the familiar tug of his favorite fighter fish.

Chrenko says he started to see the vibrant orange tone fairly quickly after the fish struck.

When he pulled it into the boat, it was a shock to his early-morning senses.

"I'm like, am I in my own... some kind of upside-down bizarro world right now, or what?" he thought.

"It's survived its first three years basically being like a glowing target to all the predator species, so it's pretty crazy that it actually grew to that size," he told FOX 17 Thursday morning.
Link: https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/lakeshore/muskegon/its-a-fish-of-destiny-vibrant-orange-smallmouth-bass-pulled-from-muskegon-river

'It's a fish of destiny': Vibrant orange smallmouth bass pulled from Muskegon River
Joshua Chrenko was on a family vacation when he reeled in a once-in-a-lifetime catch
By: Michael Martin

NEWAYGO, Mich. — Joshua Chrenko has been fishing his whole life, though he particularly enjoys the thrill of reeling in a smallmouth bass. It was the ultimate surprise back in the early morning hours of July 5, when he pulled a neon orange smallie out of the Muskegon River.

"I've caught a lot of smallmouth, and it's kind of like what I like I dedicated my hobby life to doing... So, it was special for me because I recognized how rare it really was."

It was around 5:30 a.m. near his family cabin along the Muskegon River in Newaygo. After just a handful of casts, he felt the familiar tug of his favorite fighter fish.

Chrenko says he started to see the vibrant orange tone fairly quickly after the fish struck.

When he pulled it into the boat, it was a shock to his early-morning senses.

"I'm like, am I in my own... some kind of upside-down bizarro world right now, or what?" he thought.

"It's survived its first three years basically being like a glowing target to all the predator species, so it's pretty crazy that it actually grew to that size," he told FOX 17 Thursday morning.
Link: https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/lakeshore/muskegon/its-a-fish-of-destiny-vibrant-orange-smallmouth-bass-pulled-from-muskegon-river

'It's a fish of destiny': Vibrant orange smallmouth bass pulled from Muskegon River
Joshua Chrenko was on a family vacation when he reeled in a once-in-a-lifetime catch
By: Michael Martin

NEWAYGO, Mich. — Joshua Chrenko has been fishing his whole life, though he particularly enjoys the thrill of reeling in a smallmouth bass. It was the ultimate surprise back in the early morning hours of July 5, when he pulled a neon orange smallie out of the Muskegon River.

"I've caught a lot of smallmouth, and it's kind of like what I like I dedicated my hobby life to doing... So, it was special for me because I recognized how rare it really was."

It was around 5:30 a.m. near his family cabin along the Muskegon River in Newaygo. After just a handful of casts, he felt the familiar tug of his favorite fighter fish.

Chrenko says he started to see the vibrant orange tone fairly quickly after the fish struck.

When he pulled it into the boat, it was a shock to his early-morning senses.

"I'm like, am I in my own... some kind of upside-down bizarro world right now, or what?" he thought.

"It's survived its first three years basically being like a glowing target to all the predator species, so it's pretty crazy that it actually grew to that size," he told FOX 17 Thursday morning.
Link: https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/lakeshore/muskegon/its-a-fish-of-destiny-vibrant-orange-smallmouth-bass-pulled-from-muskegon-river

'It's a fish of destiny': Vibrant orange smallmouth bass pulled from Muskegon River
Joshua Chrenko was on a family vacation when he reeled in a once-in-a-lifetime catch
By: Michael Martin

NEWAYGO, Mich. — Joshua Chrenko has been fishing his whole life, though he particularly enjoys the thrill of reeling in a smallmouth bass. It was the ultimate surprise back in the early morning hours of July 5, when he pulled a neon orange smallie out of the Muskegon River.

"I've caught a lot of smallmouth, and it's kind of like what I like I dedicated my hobby life to doing... So, it was special for me because I recognized how rare it really was."

It was around 5:30 a.m. near his family cabin along the Muskegon River in Newaygo. After just a handful of casts, he felt the familiar tug of his favorite fighter fish.

Chrenko says he started to see the vibrant orange tone fairly quickly after the fish struck.

When he pulled it into the boat, it was a shock to his early-morning senses.

"I'm like, am I in my own... some kind of upside-down bizarro world right now, or what?" he thought.

"It's survived its first three years basically being like a glowing target to all the predator species, so it's pretty crazy that it actually grew to that size," he told FOX 17 Thursday morning.
Link: https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/lakeshore/muskegon/its-a-fish-of-destiny-vibrant-orange-smallmouth-bass-pulled-from-muskegon-river

'It's a fish of destiny': Vibrant orange smallmouth bass pulled from Muskegon River
Joshua Chrenko was on a family vacation when he reeled in a once-in-a-lifetime catch
By: Michael Martin

NEWAYGO, Mich. — Joshua Chrenko has been fishing his whole life, though he particularly enjoys the thrill of reeling in a smallmouth bass. It was the ultimate surprise back in the early morning hours of July 5, when he pulled a neon orange smallie out of the Muskegon River.

"I've caught a lot of smallmouth, and it's kind of like what I like I dedicated my hobby life to doing... So, it was special for me because I recognized how rare it really was."

It was around 5:30 a.m. near his family cabin along the Muskegon River in Newaygo. After just a handful of casts, he felt the familiar tug of his favorite fighter fish.

Chrenko says he started to see the vibrant orange tone fairly quickly after the fish struck.

When he pulled it into the boat, it was a shock to his early-morning senses.

"I'm like, am I in my own... some kind of upside-down bizarro world right now, or what?" he thought.

"It's survived its first three years basically being like a glowing target to all the predator species, so it's pretty crazy that it actually grew to that size," he told FOX 17 Thursday morning.
Link: https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/lakeshore/muskegon/its-a-fish-of-destiny-vibrant-orange-smallmouth-bass-pulled-from-muskegon-river

This is what I found.
Xanthochromism
So why is the fish orange? Chrenko talked to an Indiana ecologist, who told him the color of the fish means it has a condition called Xanthochromism, according to Premier Angler.

Xanthochromism causes the pigmentation of the fish to be “unusually yellow.” Chrenko said it’s likely the bass he caught overcame “crazy odds to survive the first couple years of his life.”

In the case of a smallmouth with xanthochromism, the usual red hues are replaced with the yellow hues, giving the fish a “golden” coloration.