What kind of sunfish is this?

From the creek behind my daughters house in Grapevine.

Longear sunfish (Lepomis megalotis).

Also very aggressive for their size!

I think the fish think that about you.

I have heard that some anglers call the Longear a "South Texas Treasure"! Great fighters on a fly rod.

The creek behind her house is full of them. Great fun wade fishing with the grandkids.

They are pretty and each drainage has their own strain of them.

Good fighters on ultra light and fly rods for what I have been reading on this forum over the years.

Agreed, which is why they are one of my favorites. Last year I took a week off work and caught them in the Frio, Nueces, Sabinal, Medina, San Gabriel and Llano. In every river drainage they had a completely different look, almost to the point where someone would think they were a different species altogether.


If you fly fish the Nueces at some locations you will think they are the only fish in the river. They are so aggressive they will hit your fly before anything else can get to it.