Finally got out

[bones72]

Finally got out and went fishing. Just went up to a creek right in the middle of Belton. I’ve caught some decent bass in there before and my oldest boy had been tearing up some good sized Guadalupe’s and some really big largemouth in there back in February. Well the big fish and guads did not want to play yesterday but caught a mess of smallish (really smallish) bass and sunfish. I had almost forgot how colorful some of the sunfish in this part of Texas could be. Couldn’t get anything to commit at first just a bunch of follows and looks. Top water brought halfhearted strikes. Put on a #6 white on white clouser and that did the trick low and slow was the name of the game. Fish were really turned on just below where little springs bubbled up out of the limestone creek bed. Saw plenty of bait fish, many more than I remembered being there but no crawfish which was kind of odd. The fish though small where thick. Thick to the point where it looked like they were stunted. I guess they had been gorging on the abundant forage. Anyway was a good afternoon to be out and wading the cool water helped to beat the sweltering Texas summer heat.

[Ron Mc]

Male long-ear sunfish are on their redds year-round in Texas. You can catch them on lures as big as they, because they attack everything that comes anywhere near their redd (including your toes if you're wearing sandals).
They're the smallest sunfish, but they don't know that.
When hooked, they flare their gills and shake their bodies to scare you off.

Every drainage has its own strain markings, ear shape, colors.

Here are some from Texas, east to west.
Brushy Creek

upper Guadalupe

Seco Creek

upper Sabinal

Frio

Nueces

[JW FunGuy]

Wow Ron that is really cool! Thanks!
I actually wondered about that when I caught them in the Guad vs. Brushy Creek or the Llano , wondering if it was different strains. Now I know!

[Ron Mc]

we need Bones to take out a camera so we can add those Belton-strain long-ears to our catalog.

[bones72]

I'll get some pics the next time I get out. Took a few of the tiny bass I was catching. They might have been six to eight inches, definitely large mouth but they were just plain old fashioned fat. grabbing them they felt full to the point of bursting. The longears and warmouths had about the same body composition.

[bones72]

Nolan creek variety

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