Big Bluegill group

[Bruce Condello]

If you're interested in big bluegill--how to catch them or how to raise them, please post a comment here.

[Bruce Condello]

I'd like to see some links to good stories about big bluegill fishing. If anybody has such a link please start by posting it here. This website will be the "GO TO" place for bluegill fishing and raising big bluegills.

Pond Boss magazine and it's forum "Ask The Boss" have an almost limitless source of good information in regards to raising big bluegill.

[Bruce Condello]

Keep in mind that some of the greatest fish and fishing minds reside on Pond Boss Forum "Ask The Boss", so if there is an important question asked, it would be most practical to refer you to the Pond Boss site where these issues have been tackled by the experts.

[Frosch]

At what water temp do big bluegills start moving into shallow water? Looking back at last year, I was catching them in the beginning of April. I don't know what the water temp was here in NE at that time but ice out was earlier.

[Bruce Condello]

I usually start seeing the big males at around 60 degrees F. with regularity. The big females will often stage just into deeper water, waiting for the nests to be prepared. If you're catching males in close, try fishing out a little farther for the sows.

[Bill Cody]

Movement of prespawn BG can also depend on size of water body. Smaller waters warm faster than larger waters, and the larger the water body the more it lags behind the warming of smallest waters. In small waters with a fair amount of shallows with darker bottoms it does not take long for these embayments or shallows to warm into the high 40's or low 50's during a sunny clam day. Hungry BG will move into these areas to feed on early emerging insects. BG are actively feeding in waters of high 40's. The trick is to locate those areas and find out what they are feeding on.

[konacowboy]

What about recomendations for stocking a brand new pond with Bluegill as the target fish? In my case I have a brand new pond just under an acre in north Texas, the following has been recommended to me;

600 2-3" Coppernose Bluegill
200 2-3" Redear Sunfish
80 2-3" Native Largemouth Bass
10 lbs. Fathead Minnows

Is this a good mix? At this time I do not have a feeder, but will be on a feeding program soon after stocking.

Thanks for the thoughts...

[Bruce Condello]

Honestly, this is probably better answered in the Pond Boss "Ask The Boss" forum.


I'm not really an expert on stocking, and if you go to the Pond Boss forum you will have dozens of experts who will address the stocking concerns.

[Mike Penrose]

What type of structure best benefits BG in a small pond? I have formed a cedar tree "reef" that covers depths of 8' to the surface and continues up a slope to about 3' to surface. This structure is 30' long and 6' wide. Are there types of structure that may be more beneficial to BG specifically?

[Bruce Condello]

How about these?

[Dale Fortin]

i would like to know how to raise them. i dont have a pond though so...im not realy sure how to do it i guese you could put them in a 300 gall rubbermaid tank with a filter.