The Bluegill or Lepomis macrochirus is just one of the many kinds of fish that can be catch with a fly rod while they are on the beds. The Bluegill has many common names including Bream, Sun Perch, Blue Sunfish, Copperhead and Copperbelly. They are small freshwater fish that are known for their ability to ferociously defend their eggs. This makes the Bluegill very easy to catch in May and June while they are spawning. If you are using a fly, just land it right on top of their spawning beds and bam! The Bluegill will hit every time and you will have yourself a quick meal. 
In fact, the Bluegill is known to be on of the tastiest freshwater fish, rivalling the Walleye. You can easily identify the Bluegill by its blue or black "ear" of sorts. This extension is actually called an opercular flap and it helps cover the gills. You can check out a few unlucky Bluegills underwater in the video below...Bluegills are found in many places in the United States including Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin, Texas, and Louisiana. The Bluegill is even the state fish of Illinois! The Bluegill can grow up to 16" in length and live up to 11 years old.
I am dying to have this fish on my dinning table.
ReplyDeleteIt is quite tasty, I know from experience... A really easy bluegill meal is to clean them and then put them in campbells chicken soup... Really good on a cold winter day like today!
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