Bluegill
Lepomis macrochirus
Bluegill fish are a vibrant colored fish and one of the most popular
of the panfish. Depending on the area where the bluegills are fished,
the colors can range from blue to yellow. The best fishing times
of the day to fish for bluegills are during the mornings and early
evenings when they are feeding and looking for food.
Pumpkinseed
Lepomis gibbosus
Pumpkinseed fish are another popular panfish. They have a bright
orange to yellowish coloring with a yellow belly. Pumpkinseeds are
popular with many fishermen, and can be fished with any number of
baits both fresh and artificial.
Crappies
White crappie (Pomoxis annularis) and black crappie (Pomoxis
nigromaculatus) are both sought after panfish. The white crappie
has a light olive to silver coloring on the sides shading to a dark
olive to the back. The black crappie has a deeper arched back with
dark olive back and silvery sides. The coloring features that distinguishes
the two is that the black crappie has irregularly scattered black
spots while the white crappie has more distinguished black vertical
lines or bands on the sides. Both feed on insects and small fish.
The black crappie prefers more tame waters than the white crappie.
Yellow
Perch
Perca flavescens
Yellow perch are more elongated than the other panfishes listed
above. With a golden color on the sides, yellow perch have an olive
coloring on their backs. Yellow perch prefer to swim in schools
and feed on insects, small fish and snails. This is another good
eating panfish.
Bullheads
Black bullheads (Ictalurus melas), brown bullheads (Ictalurus
nebulosus) and yellow bullheads (Ictaluras natalis) are catfish that are popular panfish. All can be found to feed on
what is around it (both plant and animals) but is mostly carnivorous.
The black bullhead is the smallest of the three bullheads mentioned
here. Bullheads all can be found in sandy to muddy soft bottomed
waters
Renee
Shelton is the owner of this site, runs the fishing chef blog, and is the Fishing Editor for the 2nd largest women's website on the internet, BellaOnline.com. Keep up with her at her blog Sand and Succotash. Her book Basic Fish Cooking Methods: A No Frills Guide for Preparing Fresh Fish is available on Amazon.
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