sunnys

[njtransit21]

Yo, you know when you go fishing, how you catch those fish called sunny's? Well, I was kinda wondering if I could catch one and put it in a fish tank cause I like em. I catch em all the time and they're cool.

 

[SirMinion]

Exactly what is a sunny?

Enquiring Brits need to know!

 

[parker313]

You mean a sunfish?

(not my fish - from some website)

I haven't been able to find much about them, but on a couple of sites I saw it referenced that they get up to about 8" in length, for whatever that's worth...

 

[SirMinion]

Ooh that's pretty! what family are they? carp? perch? what?

Looks a little anabantoidy

 

[Da_Oz]

They are very wild. Will up root all fake plants, break the glass on a heater, eat all live plants, knock over ever rock in there bust the intake of your power filter knock down the lifter tubes on a UGF eat small fish (4 inches or less) . But yes you can have them in a fish tank as long as the hook sore heals, they will live in a tank.

 

[njtransit21]

yep, that picture is a sunny.

So your saying that it is impossible to have sunnys in a tank?

I don't think they need heaters. They live in the lake all winter right? Natural heat is best for em. Could they maybe go in a pond?

Maybe I could have em in the tank without any other fish.

How will they bust the filter?

they are nice. thats why I like fishing for em and why I wanted 1.

 

[ryan]

There are many species of Sunfish from the Lepomis genus. All can be kept in Coldwater and will readily hybridize with one another leading to hybrid fish in the wild. Which species do you intend on keeping? I can recall six commonly seen species;

Green Sunfish Lepomis cyanellus
Pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus
Orange Spotted Sunfish Lepomis humilis
Bluegill Lepomis macrohirus
Spotted Sunfish Lepomis punctatus

There is also the more commonly seen in the UK, Black-banded Sunfish or Enneacanthus chaetodon, this is one that can be kept in the UK without a licence currently. If you know the species you intend to keep I can give you some more information.

Moved to Coldwater Fish and Ponds where more help may be available.

 

[parker313]

I *think* the pic I posted said it was a Pumpkinseed - definitely not a bluegill...

I tried doing some google image searches with the latin names and that was the closest match I saw. Some of those pics had a distinct black spot above the gills, but not all of them.

Nope, the site I got it from just has it listed as a sunfish, but it was caught in a lake in Western Tennessee if that helps any.

 

[ryan]

I'd say it is a Pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus. However, all Sunfishes will readily interbreed and in an enviroment where several species or even just two are present then a new hybrid fish is often formed with characteristics from both parents which does lead to tricky identification in some cases.

 

[melleth]

Punkin' seeds and bluegills are so prety. I used to catch them a lot just for fun especially the bluiegills which seemed rather friendly and fun. They would swim right up to me when I was in the water.
I'm suer it would be cool to keep one or two in a big tank. They do get rather large. I have caught 2 pound sunfish often.

 

[whitecloud]

wow that is gooooooood looking fish . I would give it a go its worth it . But i would try to catch the smallest one u can . I have done this with some aussie fish the big ones dinnt go so well but the small ones did.

 

[njtransit21]

What would you say is the smallest tank I could put one in?

bluegill are the #1 fish I catch.

 

[Opcn]

55 gallon for two id say. they are quite messy fish and need alot of room as they dwarf VERY easily. They are a close relative of the perch, And earlyer on there family tree ties into the cichlids ancestors, and even earlyer it ties into the anabaitoids ancestors.

Opcn

 

[tetraman]

I'll try keeping one! Do they have any special requirements?

 

[RandomWiktor]

People keep saying "one" and that is making me cringe. Last I checked, they were pretty social - I always see them in huge groups when I'm out at the lake. I'd suggest a pair at least, with plenty of space as they're large, dirty, and destructive - kinda like goldfish. However, I think catching wild fish and trying to keep them in a tank would be a bad idea anyways, as it is going to create a lot of undue stress for the fish, especially since you just impaled them through the face with a hook. Being under that stress in a strange new environment will make them prone to disease and infection, and I could see a nice puncture wound causing sommething nasty under those conditions.
But, since people are seldom deterred by the ethical issues of wild caught fish, seeing as most tropicals and all marines are non-domesticated and wild caught, I would advise that you read up on your state/country's laws regarding the removal of live fish from waterways, as it is illegal in many places. The DEC keeps quite the stranglehold on any animal 'resource' that earns them money - fish, deer, and anything you can hunt or fish - and keeping wild animals of any sort frequently results in a hefty fine if you're caught. I know that in my state, keeping a squirrel for example - even if you are a liscened wildlife rehabber - earns you a $200 fine and misdemeanor if you don't have a federal exhibition liscence.

edit: Tetra-man, before you start catching something as difficult to care for as a mature sunny, you should start caring properly for the fish you presently own. A goldfish in a less than 1g bowl? A guppy being kept completely solo? Sounds like the fish you allready have could use better husbandry. That goldfish is going to die very, very young if you don't upgrade to at least a 10g tank for now, and hopefully a larger tank with companions later in life. You should check out the goldfish care info on this forum.