Bluegill Behavior

[irondragon013]

I was fishing a local canal today not catching anything. Then bluegills started slaping the water. I think it was thier tails that was making the noise. I didn't see what they were eating. I will admit that I was using worms but the gills didn't care. I caught 6 fish in a half hour then things went dead. I am going out there same time tomarrow and try some topwaters. Any idea what this Bluegill blitz was a about?
Note:
Sandy bottom with no weeds that was 1 to 3 feet deep.

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"Just when I've caught a nice trout and feeling very proud of my fly fishing ability, my feet fly out from under me and there I sit, wet, flustered and properly humiliated by the Fly Fishing gods."
Jimmy Moore, "Taken Down a Notch or Two"

[This message has been edited by irondragon013 (edited 19 December 2005).]

[dixieangler]

Sounds like they were chasing minnows. Usually a lot of activity when fish are chasing minnows. Can't say for sure but that would be my guess.

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Robert B. McCorquodale
Sebring, FL

"Flip a fly"

[ohiotuber]

Another thing that can happen sometimes plagues anglers too quick to set the hook. Gills will, at times, slash at a bug to kill/disable it, then come back to slurp up an easy meal. Many times, letting your fly lie motionless after this "slash" can result in a take.
Mike

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This site's about sharing!

[Rick Z]

Also try a midge dropper under a floating fly.

Rick

[irondragon013]

I tied up some floating nymphs. I will try the minnows and fish floating flies with a dropper.
Thanks,
Steven

[irondragon013]

Just got back and I lost count of how many fish I caught. They were all in the 6-9in range and I caught one 9in bass. I caught them on poppers and dries. They really liked my Elk Hair Caddis. I didn't even try a dropper.

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"Just when I've caught a nice trout and feeling very proud of my fly fishing ability, my feet fly out from under me and there I sit, wet, flustered and properly humiliated by the Fly Fishing gods."
Jimmy Moore, "Taken Down a Notch or Two"

[beadleech]

That's interesting. I don't know what temp your canal's at but I caught bluegill [and redear] down to 50 degree water last fall on topwater. It was in 3-4' water in channels off the main lake. At the very last I had to switch to #16 epoxy ants suspended under small poppers and grasshoppers to take fish.

Donald

[irondragon013]

I was surprised the other day to see a rise as shallow as I have been catching these fish. The air temps in my area have been in the 50's. I kept trying to get flies deeper until the other day. So now I have a winter fishing hole.

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"Just when I've caught a nice trout and feeling very proud of my fly fishing ability, my feet fly out from under me and there I sit, wet, flustered and properly humiliated by the Fly Fishing gods."
Jimmy Moore, "Taken Down a Notch or Two"

[beadleech]

I guess I'd have a winter fishing hole too, if my flies didn't bounce off the water!! *G* Catch a few for us'n what have a "hard water" problem.

Donald

[Joe Hyde]

If it's wintertime and the daytime highs where you live are in the 50s, and you've got 6-to-9 inch bluegills taking surface flies in 4-ft. water, the best advice I can give you is...DON'T EVER MOVE! KEEP LIVING THERE THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!

Over the weekend I checked a lake that I fish in often, and the only topwater action was from 5,000 Canada geese that were having way too much fun keeping little swimming holes open in the ice, between feeding flights to nearby frozen farm fields.

Soon as this lake thaws, I've got some feathers of my own I want to lay on that water. So thanks, Irondragon: I have a few Elkhair Caddis flies ratholed someplace from a trout trip two years back. Now I won't be shy about trying them on 'gills, crappie and redears; for some reason (ignorance) I've never considered using that pattern in warm water.


Joe

"Better small than not at all."