How To Fish For Bluegill – Weather Conditions, Rods, Reels, Lures, Bait

Right next to black basses and crappies, the bluegill is one of the sunfish species that inhabit the North American freshwaters. It’s also one of the most popular panfish among anglers simply because it’s easy to catch, it feeds throughout the day so you don’t have to be on the lake early, and you don’t need exceptional, expensive tackle for it.

In this post, we’re going to cover the most important aspects with regard to bluegill fishing. We’ll point out the best weather conditions and water temperature for bluegill fishing, where they hang out throughout the year, as well as the best tackle for them.

Optimal Weather And Water Conditions For Bluegill Fishing

First of all, the optimal temperature range for bluegill fishing is 65 – 80°F (18 – 26°C). Temperatures above this range, or closer to the highest side of the interval will drive them deeper, in search of colder water layers. They also begin feeding more intensely at water temperatures around 50°F (10°C). But in general, cold weather keeps them usually pretty slow and rather shy on the bite.

Unlike other fish that are mostly active at dusk and dawn, bluegill are more active once the sun is up. That’s why bluegill fishing is always a bonus for anglers that like to sleep in. They’re visual feeders, they need light to see their prey, and since they’re pretty low on the food chain, light also keeps bigger predators like walleye at bay.

Although bluegill prefer sunny weather, you can also get excellent results during rain. In general, a slight to moderate drizzle can turn on various other fish too, not just bluegill. However, a pouring, cold shower can seriously impact the water temperature and the gills may stop feeding for a while.

Wind affects light levels in the water significantly, but also moves nutrients and oxygenates the water. Bluegill fishing can be quite productive in the wind, even if it’s an overcast day, but in this case, you may have to look for them deeper.

And finally, barometric pressure can always have a saying when it comes to bluegill feeding. As a general idea, barometric pressure significantly affects the bottom of the food chain in a lake or body of water. In other words, barometric pressure will enable many microorganisms to move lower into the water column, so small fish, including bluegill will follow.

Where To Look For Bluegill By Season

Similar to many other sunfish, bluegills move to the shallows during spring to spawn. Their saucer-shaped spawning beds are easily noticeable, and that’s where you’ll find the fish too.  So, in spring, they aggressively attack anything that comes near them either in defense or to feed on.

During summer, as the water temperatures rise, bluegill will move deeper. You’ll find them at 10 ft. (3 m) or lower, depending on the depth of the body of water. They prefer weedy beds or weed-covered humps. Milfoil and coontail provide excellent cover for them as well as travel corridors beneath.

During fall, catching especially big bluegills can be challenging as water temperature drops. As a general rule, they’ll move up from their deeper summer places but will still hold close to brush, rocks, timber, or other structure that can serve as cover. They’ll still bite throughout the day, but depending on the weather, they may be slower on the bite. Several days with sunny weather and constant temperatures should provide excellent conditions for fall bluegill fishing.

In winter, bluegill school closer together than for the rest of the year. They also don’t move much which makes finding the fish more difficult, even with a fish finder. And even if you found them, you may still have to drill at least a few holes to place the bait right under their noses to trigger a strike. In winter, good bets for bluegill are steep bluffs, mouths of coves, dock edges, or other structure that goes pretty deep. Also, if the body of water has submerged trees, bluegill will often suspend over branches. Places with other types of vegetation are also great spots to start with.

Tackle For Bluegill

Bluegill don’t grow extremely large. The largest ones can grow up to 4 pounds; the tackle record for bluegill is actually only 4 lbs 12 oz (2.15 kg). This being said, ultra-light or light tackle, similar to crappie tackle, should be enough for them.

Even though they’re predatory by nature and their mouths are equipped with several bands of small teeth, you don’t need extra strong terminal tackle for them. Also, they have pretty small mouths compared to crappie and bass, so you’ll need smaller hooks (in a range of #8 – #12).

So, here are a few pointers in terms of rods, reels, and other tackle for bluegill.

Rods

First of all, since bluegill have small mouths, you’ll be working with smaller lures and baits, so, spinning gear is a better choice here, as opposed to casting. Even though casting gear offers precision, spinning gear allows for longer casts with light lures.

So, as a general idea, you’ll need an ultra-light or light action spinning rod, within a 6′ – 7′ range. Here are a few examples:

Now, most anglers will catch bluegill, and sunfish in general, with just about any rod. So, in terms or price, a $30-40 rod should do. However, if you still want supreme quality, you can’t go wrong with a St. Croix, that’s why one of our recommendations above is one.

Reels

If you’re going to work with a light rod, and light tackle in general, needless to say, you should also opt for a light reel. So, pair your rod with a spinning reel within 1000 – 2500 range. Here are a few pointers:

Fishing Line

Bluegill aren’t particularly line-shy; in fact, especially in spring while they’re excessively territorial, they will attack your line! However, it’s a fact that they have a pretty sharp eyesight, and using a lighter line will produce better results. So, monofilament or braided line, within the #2 – #6 range, tipped with a #2 – #3 fluoro leader makes an excellent set-up choice for bluegill.

Baits, Lures, Rigs

Bluegill can be caught on a wide variety of live baits. The list includes nightcrawlers, red wigglers, waxworms, maggots, caterpillars, and various other types of larvae. Insects such as crickets, grasshoppers, and small locusts, can produce great results. But in lack of any live bait, you can also use canned corn and bread. Plus, you can also catch them on small pieces of fish (just cut a minnow into several small pieces).

In terms of artificials, small caliber jigs are widely used for catching bluegills. Colors and types can vary depending on season, time of day, and visibility, that’s why if you’re going to use lures, the more you have in your arsenal, the better. However, chartreuse or colors in this range always seem to produce better results, for me at least, that’s the starting color. So, 1/32 chartreuse jig heads tipped with a curly tail worm, a small soft plastic minnow, or a dragonfly larva imitation are great to start with.

Gills are also interested in small spinners like rooster tails, or lures that combine a jig with a spoon, like road runners. Flies, poppers, and other surface lures can also produce great results, but especially in spring, when bluegills move to shallow waters.

In terms of terminal tackle, you don’t need any sophisticated rigs for bluegill, if you’re not going to use lures. You can simply tie a jig head to the line, or to a fluoro leader, tip it with a worm and that’s it.

Drifting a slip bobber rig is also a great way to catch gills, and in this case, you can use a jig at the end of the line, or a single hook and a small sinker at about 5-6 inches above the hook. Downsized Carolina rigs can successfully be used for bluegills, especially if you fish from the shore, or longer casts are required.