Hot Bites: Bluegill Strategies

Often referred to as "America's Favorite Fish", bluegills are popular with adults and youngsters alike. Bluegills are found in practically every body of freshwater in America – with the exception of cold water trout streams, of course.

Lots of anglers catch bluegills, but not everyone zeros in on the big ones. In part because not all bodies of water are capable of producing respectable size 'gills. Some waters simply do not have the right combination of cover, depth, food, predators and pH balance to grow chunky-size gills.

And just because a lake is capable of growing decent bluegills does not mean all anglers are consistently going to catch them. Having a strategy for bluegills is more than sticking a piece of worm on a hook and casting into the shallows. Jigs like the Little Nipper, Quiver Jig and Little Guppy from Lindy help to refine bluegill presentations.

When selecting a jighead for bluegill fishing, size certainly does matter, and smaller is better. Jigs should be, generally, no larger than 1/32 ounce. Several other popular panfish (crappie, rock bass, green sunfish, redear sunfish and others) have a mouth considerably larger than a bluegill; therefore you can get by with a larger hook. But for bluegills (and pumpkinseeds), the best hook sizes are #8 to #12.

After the spawn, many anglers have difficulty finding respectable bluegills even in lakes where they are known to exist. In part, the problem is they continue to fish the same shallow areas that the fish were in during the spring. Meanwhile, the big bluegills have moved to deeper water.

Bob Hornstorm has no problem catching a mess of big bluegills on almost every summer outing. First, he moves out of the shallow to the outside edge of the weed growth. Then he cruises the structures that lead to deeper water, looking for hard bottom points, rock piles, or slight rises.

"I am looking for schools of bluegills on the sonar," says Hornstorm. "The fish may be near the bottom or suspended off structure just like gamefish. Typical depths range from 15 to 25 feet. While I may not be able identify the exact species by the marks on the sonar, I can however judge size (bluegills vs. large fish). Then I drop a line down to them in an attempt to catch one."

If you want to stay on top of big bluegills, don't fish haphazardly. Plan your strategy with specific presentations and catch big fish.