Bluegill - Big Bluegill

Do you love big bluegill?

Blue Gill Joubertina, Eastern Cape South Africa

The Beginning:

There are only two types of fish here; the overly praised bass and the belittled Blue Gill. There are no other fish, the ocean is 3 hours drive away and the trout and yellowfish are many hours away(I couldn't afford that anyway)

No one knows for sure how BG got here, but they are here now and I am grateful. It is not even known how Blue Gill get into all the small dams that are used for irrigating the fruit orchards, which is the only reason this town is here.

There is a theory that BG eggs are carried on the legs and feet of ducks and geese to other dams, I don't know if it is possible.

Unfortunately the pesticides and herbicides that the farmers use on the orchards kill fish. It runs into the ground and then into the dams, dams below orchards never have fish or any water insects. Basically it is dead water that soon becomes stagnant and disgusting.

The dams to look for are the dams above orchards or far away from orchards.  

I am surrounded by dams, but few have any fish.

So far I have found two dams.

I have a pipe that my rod fits in with caps, I duct tape it to my bicycle, fill a bag with essentials and off I go!

The first is high in the mountains that gets fed by water running off the hills. There are only BG in that dam and nobody knows how they got there. It is full of BG and I mean really full. And nobody else knows about it! it is and impressive place to fish, with the mist crawling over the hills and the husky bark of baboons not far off and maybe if you are quiet an otter or a water mongoose. Don't leave any Blue Gill lying about!

It is not uncommon to catch 16 BG in an hour. The problem being that before your fly can get to the really big BG deep down some little fingerling attacks your fly. You can see the brutes down there, but your fly cannot sink fast enough.

The other dam is my pride and joy, its my dam. A great deal of my time goes into pulling out aquatic plants, clearing and planting treas around it. At the moment it is well balanced with nice bass and some +9 inch blue gill. I don't feed my fish, it is all done as naturally as I can manage. 

And I search on for alluring unfished, unpolluted and unloved little pond/dam .......

where there thar be monster blue gills hiding!

Mathew

This is first for me, don't judge me to harshly! 

Views: 539

Comment

You need to be a member of Bluegill - Big Bluegill to add comments!

Join Bluegill - Big Bluegill

Comment by Keith Ritter on January 11, 2014 at 7:30am
Awesome blog, would like to here more and HEY! From West Tennessee.
Comment by David, aka, "McScruff" on January 8, 2014 at 1:25pm

Im with the rest of these guys, Matthew - I hope we see lots more from you. Especially, can you collect and share pictures of things you see while fishing? Things like the ponds, the baboons local sights, etc.? Call it a sort of "mini-tour" of your neck of SA?

(Maybe a picture or two of Charlize Theron, while you're at it?)

Comment by LedHed on January 8, 2014 at 12:18pm

All that water and so little Bluegill. Very interesting blog - thnx for sharing.

Comment by carl hendrix on January 8, 2014 at 11:00am

that's a real good blog Mathew!!  great to hear something of this type!  keep them coming!

Comment by Mathew Blakeway on January 8, 2014 at 10:49am

 Tony Livingston

Thanks a lot for the encouragement! As I learn more and do more I will definitely add to this blog. I will upload some photos soon!

Comment by Mathew Blakeway on January 8, 2014 at 10:46am

McScruff, aka, David 

I doubt the blue gill did damage around here as most of the dams are man made.

The baboons are quite a problem around they steal a lot of the fruit, Our valley lives off exporting apples, pears etc and the baboons thrive on it! Another problem is that sometimes the baboons attract Leopards! A large population of bush pigs also live of the fruit, those are some scary critters. 

Comment by Tony Livingston on January 8, 2014 at 10:05am

Mathew, thank you for that excellent post! I find it quite interesting and refreshing to read about our favorite fish found in different parts of the world, and I hope you continue to add to your blog, as well as contributing to the site as a whole. Welcome to BBG and don't be shy!

Outstanding!! Feature material!

Comment by David, aka, "McScruff" on January 8, 2014 at 9:28am

What a great intro, Matthew!

I do know that bluegill were introduced around the world starting as far back as the 1920's, if my memory serves correctly. They go by a lot of names here...

Bream

Sunnies

Bluegill

perch

brim - (common where I live in the South)

According to wikipedia: The bluegill or bluegulli occurs naturally in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains from coastal Virginia to Florida, west to Texas and northern Mexico, and north to western Minnesota and western New York. Today they have been transported almost everywhere else in North America, and have also been introduced into Europe, South Africa, Asia, South America, and Oceania."

At Invasive Species South Africa, they are listed as

  • NEMBA – Category 1b
  • A problem in Western and Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Free State, Mpumalanga and Gauteng
  • Dominates the fish fauna in areas where it has been introduced... tendency to overpopulate, resulting in stunted populations dominated by smaller fish. Results in considerable pressure exerted in invertebrates and on juveniles of indigenous fishes.
  • http://www.invasives.org.za/item/369-bluegill-sunfish-lepomis-macro...

According to the book, "Fishes of South Africa," bluegill were planted in South Africa in the 1930s to feed the largemouth bass planted three years earlier. Both stocks came from the USA.

You can see more of this here: http://grayssportingjournal.com/index.php?option=com_content&ta...

The barking of baboons? Really? Ive just added a new location to my personal bucket list.

Latest Activity

John Sheehan commented on John Sheehan's photo
Thumbnail

Perch eats Rainbow Trout Pattern

"Actually, a tough one Bruce, only three Fish, A small Bass, a small Pickerel and this Perch which…"
4 hours ago
Bruce Tomaselli commented on John Sheehan's photo
Thumbnail

Perch eats Rainbow Trout Pattern

"Looks like you had a fine day, John. Great perch!"
yesterday
John Sheehan posted photos
Wednesday
Jeffrey D. Abney commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Thumbnail

Labor Day Weekend Crab Boil….9/2/2024

"Thanks Tooty…..dropped a little weight……just enjoy good food and a few…"
Tuesday
Jeffrey D. Abney commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Tuesday
DAVID L EITUTIS commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Thumbnail

Labor Day Weekend Crab Boil….9/2/2024

"GEEZ JEFFREY  LOOKS LIKE YOU'VE LOST SOME WEIGHT ?"
Tuesday
DAVID L EITUTIS commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Thumbnail

Another Nice Swampcracker…..8/24/2024

"NICE ONE JEFFREY!!!!!!!!"
Tuesday
Jeffrey D. Abney commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Thumbnail

Another Nice Swampcracker…..8/24/2024

"Great to hear Dick…..we’re doing great, healthy…..had an above average fishing…"
Sep 6
dick tabbert commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Thumbnail

Another Nice Swampcracker…..8/24/2024

"Yes Jeffrey I'm doing good  Got a new gal and enjoying life again. I've been working…"
Sep 5
Jeffrey D. Abney commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Thumbnail

Labor Day Weekend Crab Boil….9/2/2024

"Thanks Dick…..it’s been a great summer in North Carolina for…"
Sep 5
Jeffrey D. Abney commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Thumbnail

Another Nice Swampcracker…..8/24/2024

"Thanks Dick….hope you’re doing well…."
Sep 5
dick tabbert commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Sep 5
dick tabbert commented on Jeffrey D. Abney's photo
Sep 5
John Sheehan commented on DAVID L EITUTIS's photo
Thumbnail

SAME DAY DIFFERENT FISH

"Photos - Bluegill - Big Bluegill (ning.com) Bill Trussell check out the Green Sunfish photos,…"
Sep 4
John Sheehan commented on DAVID L EITUTIS's photo
Thumbnail

SAME DAY DIFFERENT FISH

"Green Sunfish "
Sep 4
John Sheehan commented on Bill Trussell's blog post Catfish on the Fly
"Bill, yeah, a big smallmouth would be a great fight, The tenacity of Smallies is amazing!"
Sep 4
Bill Trussell commented on Bill Trussell's blog post Catfish on the Fly
"John The largest fish I have ever landed using the fly rod- my only regret is it not being a bass,…"
Sep 4
Bill Trussell commented on Bill Trussell's blog post Catfish on the Fly
"Bruce Yes, it's quite a challenge using my 3 wt."
Sep 4
Bruce Tomaselli commented on Bill Trussell's blog post Catfish on the Fly
"That had to be a lot of fun on the fly rod."
Sep 3
John Sheehan commented on Bill Trussell's blog post Catfish on the Fly
"Wow, great fight .Especially on a 3 wt. Fly Rod! They are powerful Fish!"
Sep 3

© 2024   Created by Bluegill.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service