Caught this last night on the Hudson in Glens Falls. Was about 16 inches. Skin was smooth not scaly and the red around the bottom of the head was color not blood. Anyone know what it is? I'm thinking something from the carp family.
What you've got there is a fallfish (proper name) or a chub. They're a large cousin to the minnow. You can eat them to survive if you have to but generally everyone throws them back. Some put up a pretty good fight if you're in to that sort of thing and I've heard of some fisherman using them for bait.