Thursday, November 11, 2010

Bluegill Research

SAE: 1 hour

It is COLD outside! I decided to do some work from here, in the warmth of my house. Today I discovered this awesome website, http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/species/bgl/, it has a profile of the bluegill sunfish, I found some really cool facts. The scientific name for a bluegill is Lepomis macrochirus, they look like this...



Bluegills start to spawn in spring, when the water temperature reaches about 70 degrees and they do not stop until temperatures cool off again in the fall, but their main spawning season is usually between May and June. Their long spawning period usually causes bluegills to overpopulated and they can take over an area. Luckily for fisherman though, the more fish, the larger the chance is to catch one.

In the Eastern United States, bluegills are native, but they have also spread intentionally and unintentionally throughout America as well as parts of Canada and Mexico. Sunfish, including bluegills, make up a large portion of the freshwater fishing community and they are vital in the ecosystem's food web. A 4lb 12oz. fish was brought to shore from Ketona Lake, Alabama in 1950, that is the largest bluegill ever recorded!

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