Pennsylvania Fishing - Bluegill & Other Sunfish Fishing in PA - Fly Fishing, Bait & Lure Techniques for Catching Sunfish in Pennsylvania
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Pennsylvania Panfish Fishing

Sunfish Fishing in Pennsylvania for Bluegills, Rock Bass, White Bass, White Perch, Yellow Perch and Other PA Panfish.

One or more species of sunfish populate virtually all warm water streams, ponds and lakes throughout Pennsylvania and around the world for that matter. They can survive in waters that provide their natural food source of minnows, crustaceans, insects and worms. Their competitive nature amongst themselves for food, makes them relatively easy to catch.

Sunfish Lakes In Pennsylvania

Panfish are everywhere. Everywhere!. Major PA lakes with healthy populations of sunfish include Allegheny Reservoir, Blue Marsh Lake, Glendale Lake, High Point Reservoir, Lake Arthur, Lake Erie, Lake Wallenpaupack, Pymatuning Lake, Raystown Lake, Shenango River Lake, Tamarack Lake and Youghiogheny River Lake. In addition you can fisn panfish in many ponds, rivers and smaller lakes throughout the state.

The PA state record Bluegill was caught out of Keystone Lake and Elk Creek gave up the Pennsylvania state record rock bass. Minsi Lake produced the state record white perch and the PA state record yellow perch came from Hunters Lake.

Panfish are prolific spawners and repopulate the waters as fast as they are harvested. A common problem with panfish fishing is that the waters are under-fished causing panfish to overpopulate. As a result they tend to stay small in size due to lack of food source.

The list of panfish is comprised of many fishes each called by a variety of names. The bluegill tops the list and is the most common.

Bluegill
Lepomis macrochirus

Other local jargon names for the bluegill include common yellow perch, sunfish, red-breasted bream, red-spotted sunfish, long-eared sunfish, white bass as well as a host of variations and cross breeds. These fish tend to run in schools and congregate near their food supply. Panfish can be found in depths of 35 feet or more but are more commonly found in one to ten feet depths depending on time of day and weather conditions.

Check for Pennsylvania bluegill fishing articles in the articles section.

Crappie are also considered panfish. For details on crappie visit our crappie fishing section.

Rock Bass
Ambloplites rupestris
World Record: 3.0 lbs.
Native to the eastern half of the USA, the rock bass is good eating and fun to catch on light tackle or a fly rod. You can find rock bass in streams and rivers where they prefer clear water eith rocky bottom and vegetation. They feed primarily on smaller fish, insects, and crustaceans. Worms, grubs and cut bait work well. The rock bass, aka goggle-eye, green sunfish and sometimes branch perch, prefers water temperatures from 64 to 72 degrees.

White Bass
Morone chrysops
World Record: 6.8 lbs.
The white bass has silver sides with horizontal dark stripes and is often called sand bass, stripes, barfish and silver bass. They are a good fighter, fun to catch and they tend to run in schools. Often big schools of several hundred or more. Their primary diet is bait fish and other smaller fish but they also eat worms and insects. Fish for the white bass on light tackle with jigs, spoons, minnow-imitation lures and live bait including worms and minnows. White bass often school deep, particularly in summer and winter - moving shallower in spring and fall. Their prefered water temperature range is from 63 to 76 degrees.

White Perch
Morone americana
USA Record: 4.6 lbs
The white perch is named for its color which ig generally white or silver with shades of adaptive color from its environment to help it hide from predators. They are a good tasting fish and are even fished commercially. They are quite prolific and can be considered a nuisance in some waters. They prefer water temperatures from 62 to 70 degrees. Also known as perch, silver perch, perch and grey perch. White perch make a great fish fry with nice filets coming from ones approaching a pound. Use light tackle to fish for white perch. For bait, use worms, minnows, jigs, spoons and small lures imitating baitfish.

Yellow Perch
Perca flavescens
USA Record: 3.75 lbs
Possibly the best tasting of all the panfish, yellow perch are a favorite for fish frys. They are generally yellow, to gold, to brown in color and most often lighter shades of these colors. Dark vertical bands decorate their sides. They average about a third of a pound and 6 inches long, many larger ones are often caught as well. They are often mis-named as perch, rock perch and many others. Their primary diet consists of minnows and other small fish, onsects and worms. Yellow perch prefer water temperatures from 66 to 70 degrees but remain active in temperatures outside this range. They are fun to catch on ultralight tackle and can be caught year round. They are a favorite of many ice fishing enthusiasts. Use worms, minnows, small jigs. spinners or cut bait.

For general information on local fishing visit the Pennsylvania Fishing home page.

If you offer fishing guide services for Panfish in Pennsylvania we would like to include you as a resource for our visitors. We offer a complimentary listing for your guide service on our Pennsylvania Fishing Guides page or you can see other options to promote your panfish fishing guide services in Pennsylvania by visiting our Advertising opportunities section.

Let us list your fishing or outdoor activity-related websites in our Pennsylvania Business Directory. It is included to provide our visitors with direct access to PA fishing related resources.

How to submit Pennsylvania fishing articles.

PA Sunfish Fishing - All About Fishing for Bluegill & Other Panfish in Pennsylvania.

 
Photos

BLUEGILL

Bluegill Picture
World Record Bluegill

4 lbs - 12 oz

Pennsylvania Record Bluegill

2 lbs - 9 oz

Preferred Water Temperature

60 - 85 Degrees

Preferred Habitat

Prefers slightly stained to murky water with little or no current. Survives in most warm bodies of water.

 

 

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