The bluegill is a type of fish usually found in lakes, ponds, and slow moving streams. Their scientific name is Lepomis Macrochirus.
Bluegill are deep-bodied, slab-sided fish with small mouths. The back and sides are olive-green to brown, often with vertical bars on the sides. The lower portion of the gill cover is blue, hence the name "bluegill". Males become darker during spawning and develop deep orange/red breasts and lavender sides. Bluegill are most recognizable by the orange belly, the dark lobe on the gill cover, and the black spot near the base of the soft dorsal fin.
Bluegills are a small fish. Their average length is 6-7 inches, and weighs only an average of 3-6 ozs. The largest known bluegill was caught in Ketona Lake, Alabama in 1950 – it was 4 pounds, 12 ounces!
Their diet consists mostly of flies and other small insects. They are often called by a variety of names, including bream, brim, blue bream, sun perch, blue sunfish, copperhead, copperbelly, coppernose bream, redbreasted sunfish, baldface, plumb granny, pumpkinseed, pond perch, and roach.
Despite their small size, bluegill are among the favorite fish of many anglers. They are easy and fun to catch, even for children, and are quite nummy.