FISH: SUNFISH

Bluegill, Lepomis macrochirus

Family Centrarchidae (Sunfish)

Size: Up to 10"

Range: Throughout Colorado

Habitat: Shallow lakes and rivers with aquatic plants

Also known as the “bream,” the bluegill is a popular freshwater sport fish. It has an oval, highly compressed body with a small mouth, a dorsal fin that is elongated to the rear, and a slightly forked tail fin. Its color is grayish-green above, with indistinct, darker, broad vertical bars along the sides, and a dark blue-black patch on the operculum. The underparts are silvery to yellow, becoming red-orange on the chest of the spawning male. Bluegills feed on insects, insect larvae, crustaceans, and small fish. The male is illustrated.