Does anyone have a lead or supplier of Pumpkinseed sunfish?? Not afraid to drive to pick up 100-200 fish, even trade fish of some sort??? My RES are not doing as well as I think they should and am wondering if I'm high enough and cool enough the PSS would be a better choice.
I was surprised to find that Kansas varies from 472 to 4,272 feet above sea level. Back in school we were taught that all you needed were a stick, six gopher holes, and a dozen rocks to shoot pool anywhere in Kansas.
FishinRod, most likely supply and demand. They don't reproduce as much as Bluegill, more similar to RES. Few(er) hatcheries up North in their native range vs down south where RES grow.
Yes, they also have the pharyngeal teeth to crush snails, but they don't get anywhere as big as RES. Most sizes that we see here are 6", an 8" one is a true MONSTER. They do NOT colony nest like BG or RES, males make a nest that is roughly 3x the size that a male BG of the same size would make. If I can find one in a local lake next month that is spawning I will try to get a picture. A 6" male PS will make a nest that is 24" dia or a wee bit bigger.
You could have caught Longears, Many people in KS call them "pumpkin-seeds".
Thanks. Pretty sure you nailed it. Those images match my memory.
The Boy Scout leaders at the lake called them pumpkinseeds. When I was a young scout I was pretty sure all of the leaders were omniscient on every outdoors topic. Then I myself became a scout leader and realized how much stuff I DIDN'T know despite being outdoors every chance I got.
