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Sunfish Family

Largemouth Bass The back and upper sides of the largemouth is a dark green color and its sides have dark irregular patches. As its name implies, the mouth is large with the end of the upper jaw extending to or beyond the rear margin of the eye. It prefers small lake (stock dam) habitat. Its eyes are golden in color. Also called largemouth black bass.

Smallmouth Bass The samllmouth is similar in color to the largemouth except for barred markings on its sides and red colored eyes. The mouth is smaller and the rear of the upper jaw does not extend beyond the center of the eye. It prefers habitat similar to the walleye and is also known as smallmouth black bass.

Bluegill This wonderful and scrappy little fish varies in coloration but usually is dark olive above with dark vertical bars on the upper sides and orange or yellow on the throat and belly. Its gill covers are blue with a black tip on the flap. It is probably the most popular member of the sunfish family in North Dakota, however, at times it may be stunted due to overpopulation. It is also called bream, sunfish, and sunny.

Orange-spotted Sunfish Similar to the bluegill but usually more colorful and smaller in size. It has a black tab on its gill cover that is edged in white. It is not common in North Dakota.

Pumpkinseed Similar to the bluegill but lighter in color and usually not as large. It has a red or orange spot on the flap of the gill cover. It may hybridize with the bluegill and is not abundant in North Dakota.

Rock Bass The rock bass, found in the Red River drainage, is also similar to the bluegill but has a larger mouth and a red eye. At times it is caught in the Red, Sheyenne, and Forest rivers. It is also called redeye.

Green Sunfish The green sunfish is small and hardy and ofter overpopulates our waters. It also resembles a bluegill but has a much larger mouth and a black tip on the gill cover that is edged in a lighter color. Quite common in southwestern North Dakota, it is seldom important as a sport fish.

Black Crappie Flat and silvery in appearance and marked with irregular dark spots, the crappie is a very attractive and desirable fish. The black crappie has 7 or 8 eight spines in the dorsal fin. It prefers clear water conditions.

White Crappie Looks similar to the black crappie but only has 5 or 6 spines in the dorsal fin. The dark spots on its sides are consolidated into vertical bars. The white crappie is more tolerant of turbid water than the black crappie and well suited to reservoirs such as Lake Tschida and Patterson Lake.