Spotted bass

The spotted bass (Micropterus punctulatus) grows to 24 inches (61 cm) and is often confused with the more common smallmouth bass. The side contains connected dark blotches aligned in a row. The upper jaw extends to the back of the eye but not beyond it. It is native to the Mississippi River basin and much of the Gulf states from central Texas through the Florida panhandle. Its native range extends into the western mid-atlantic states and it has been introduced into eastern North Carolina and Virginia. It inhabits cool and warm mountain streams and reservoirs. It feeds on insects, crustaceans and fishes.

It is one of the group of freshwater fishes that are collectively called the black basses.

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Most of this information was taken from the following source:
Freshwater Fishes of the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland & Delaware by F.C Rohde, R.G. Arndt, D.G. Lindquist, & J.F. Parnell. 1994. University of North Carolina Press. 222 pp.