About Micropterus henshalli Hubbs & Bailey, 1940
Micropterus henshalli, commonly known as the Alabama bass, is a medium-sized freshwater ray-finned black bass fish. It belongs to the genus Micropterus, which is part of the sunfish family Centrarchidae. This species is endemic to the southeastern United States, where it is native to rivers that drain into Mobile Bay across Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia. It inhabits flowing river pools and impoundments. Alabama bass have been introduced to other areas of the United States. After Alabama bass were introduced into Keowee Reservoir in South Carolina, hybridization between this species and redeye bass is thought to have caused the decline of the native redeye bass population. Micropterus henshalli was first formally described as a subspecies of spotted bass (M. punctulatus) in 1940 by Carl Leavitt Hubbs and Reeve Maclaren Bailey, with the type locality recorded as Jefferson County, Alabama. Its specific name honors James A. Henshall, a bass angler.
