Coppernose Bluegill and Georgia Giant Bream
Alright, the lakes and rivers are too muddy and high around here, they'll drop 5 or 6 feet, then rise again, so I've been fishing 3 ponds. Today I caught 58 fish, mostly buck bass from 9" to 14", then changed to another pond downstream and got 4 or 5 pounder. Anyway, I noticed I catch a BIG sunfish about as often as I do a bass. I looked it over, first thought it was a greenie sunfish, but the average size for this pond is way over 6 inches, did a little net research, and am convinced this is a Georgia Giant. This pond was stocked with catfish, bass, and the owner says, "Coppernose Bluegill." It was stocked only once, around 1991. These fish are definitely not bluegill, they're mouth is too big, and the markings are wrong. Every time I ever saw a green sunfish, they'd be lucky to be 4" or 5" long. There is also bluegill in this pond, they are larger than normal size, but nowhere near the size of these monsters. I caught one exactly a foot long, didn't have the scales with me. They were hitting bass spinnerbaits, 2-3 inch crankbaits, plastic worms, 4-1/2" Rapalas, well any bass baits I threw out here. There for a while I got into them and probably caught one 8" or better on 9 or 10 straight casts on a 6" plastic worm.
I hear the Georgia Giant might get 5 lbs. If a lot of the hype that says the GA Giant might revert back to a green sunfish or bluegill, I don't understand why, this pond was stocked only once as I said before-18 years ago, they can't be a nuisance fish, right? If so, whoever planned this pond is a genius, it's 6 acres and 20' deep in spots. Plenty of bass 5+ pounds, not sure if the catfish are still there, but there's 7 grass carp in there about 30 lbs. apiece. It's gonna be hard to go back to crappie, striper, and white bass fishing after the day I had today. Sorry, I don't have photos, we're lucky to get a cell phone to work here.