The terms seem interchangeable depending on where you live. I was curious to hear from any TFFers that like to flyfish with light/ultralight rods for these fun fish and what their favorite flies are. The Spring bream bite is coming soon where I normally fish and I am trying to get prepared...thanks for any responses folks.

Briminator, wooley buggers, scuds, Orvis jig buggers (topwater) Llano Bugs, small poppers, even caddis, any kind of foam poppers w/ legs.
Fish On!

I like nymphs, mostly Bead Heads, depending on depth...Prince, Pheasant Tail, Zug Bug, squirrel tail all very effective especially if you add some rubber legs. They are the best locator flies for bream that I've found.

Agree with both, I use a lot of foam bugs as an indicator for a dropper. Briminator, wooly buggers, any beadhead trout nymph, and have branched out with some soft plastics as well. Squirminator, silliworms, trout magnet jigs on a 1/80oz jig head hook, etc....

Luv to catch them. About the only still water I try for. Near Deers, jig flies and squirminators on a glass rod + fat bream = pure joy

For still water sunfish I start with a dry fly (don't worry about matching the hatch, just something that floats and looks buggy) or a foam hopper like a Llano Bug. If they aren't hitting on top I switch to a near deer or small woolly bugger.

For fishing creeks or rivers where I have some current I typically forgo the streamers and just use a hopper-dropper rig with a Llano Bug on the surface and a soft hackle suspended below it. I fish it various ways ranging from trying to get a drag free drift like I was trout fishing to casting it out and stripping it back in small increments, which seems to really get the hackle pulsating nicely. Usually I am catching many more fish on the dropper for every one on the hopper, but the hopper works as a great indicator and on the odd chance one hits it it will hook them unlike a Thingamabobber.

Small foam popper and Briminator.

I love catching panfish. I've had the most luck with a little black popper with some rubber legs. It was some mini popper, which was one of the first flies I bought from Orvis when I got started. Still going strong after a few coats of nail polish. I also have pretty good luck with foam bugs.

It's been even more fun since I bought a cheap Cabela's CGR 4wt glass rod for $60, those little dudes fight pretty well for their size.

You can't go wrong with a Llano bug. I have been thinking about tying some smaller Llanos lately. Also the past few trips to a local creek/pond I have seen some good sized sunfish go after Martin droppings. I have thought about making a fly similar to a San Juan worm but out of white foam just to see if it increases my odds.

I like using fake insect type flies that float. Its fun to see the fish grab your lure. The bluegill in my pond will not go after an appropriately sized clouser or wooly bugger for some reason, but are easy to catch on soft plastic baits.

Here is a fish I caught on a fly made from a foam earplug and some chicken feathers

Beautiful fish! I also like how you McGyvered a fly out of an earplug.

Bettis poppers or anything made of foam with rubber legs for top water action. Olive hares ear or prince nymphs for sub-surface. Hopper/dropper combo of these two usually catches any sunfish in the water. A fly rod and sunfish have saved me from getting completely skunked on many fishing trips.

Wow - great responses. Thanks folks. Given the challenges with catching bass on the fly, I see this as a great way to bend a rod with more frequency. I will snap photos of the bream flies I have gotten thus far for your comments. Thanks!'

If you have still water or even a creek with lots of deep runs and see a lot of little blue damsel flys. dropping an olive damsel nymph off the back of a popper is deadly as they are one of the few nymphs that can really swim well. Those nymphs are crack to trout in high glacier lakes. They will fly in from 30 feet away to hit them. I love the ear plug fly!!!!! If you've been fishing way too much recently you can just stick two of your flys in your ears and head out to the truck and get in. you can honestly say you never heard anybody trying to stop you Yelling you need to mow the grass Lol. Too funny but I like it

P.s. I have to second beautiful gill right there!

Sure, even we hardcore carp folk can appreciate the beauty of these fish. I only wish TPWD would dedicate their trout stocking funds to stocking more of these beauties instead!

"crack to trout" really got my attention! Thanks for the heads up, Robert.

Thats a big sassy slab i second the bettis poppers

My favorite thing about sunfish is you can pretty much throw anything and if you place it right, they'll hit. It's a good thing they don't have teeth because if they did, Texas waters would be dangerous to swim in. I caught this Longear on a Boogle Bug popper that was almost as big as he was. Can't get enough of their spring colors!



My best success has been with Bennett's Rio Getter. If fish are chasing but reluctant to bite, the rio getter always solves the problem.

Made a short trip this afternoon. TFO Finesse 2wt, Cortland Retro II reel, small Betts Popper and a #12 squirmy worm.






Could see a lot of beds, most empty. Gills were abundant, and fell pray to the barbless squirmy worm and the lone bass to the popper.

I only started fly fishing a couple of years ago, and still have a lot to learn. Been practicing out a Oak Point park, with a popper/dropper. The dropper being a size 20 Copper John. This last Saturday every 5th~6th cast the Copper John gets hit with a bluegill. One of the more pretty ones I got was this guy.