Lepomis microlophus (Drawing by Duane Raver)
Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Superclassis/Classis: Actinopterygii
Classis/Subclassis: Actinopteri
Subclassis/Infraclassis: Neopterygii
Infraclassis: Teleostei
Megacohors: Osteoglossocephalai
Supercohors: Clupeocephala
Cohors: Euteleosteomorpha
Subcohors: Neoteleostei
Infracohors: Eurypterygia
Sectio: Ctenosquamata
Subsectio: Acanthomorphata
Divisio/Superordo: Acanthopterygii
Subdivisio: Percomorphaceae
Series: Eupercaria
Ordo: Centrarchiformes
Subordo: Centrarchoidei
Familia: Centrarchidae
Genus: Lepomis
Species: Lepomis microlophus
Name
Lepomis microlophus (Günther, 1859)
Type locality: St. Johns River, Florida, U.S.A
Holotype (unique): MCZ 3245
Synonyms
Pomotis microlophus Günther, 1859
References
Günther, A. 1859: Catalogue of the fishes in the British Museum. Catalogue of the acanthopterygian fishes in the collection of the British Museum. Gasterosteidae, Berycidae, Percidae, Aphredoderidae, Pristipomatidae, Mullidae, Sparidae. 1: i-xxxi + 1-524. BHL
Lee, D.S., C.R. Gilbert, C.H. Hocutt, R.E. Jenkins, D.E. McAllister & J.R. Stauffer, Jr. 1980: Atlas of North American freshwater fishes. Publication #1980-12 of the North Carolina Biological Survey. i-x + 1-854.
Links
Lepomis microlophus – Taxon details on Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS).
Lepomis microlophus in FishBase,
Froese, R. & Pauly, D. (eds.) 2024. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication, www.fishbase.org, version 02/2024.
Lepomis microlophus in Catalog of Fishes, Eschmeyer, W.N., Fricke, R. & van der Laan, R. (eds.) 2024. Catalog of Fishes electronic version.
Vernacular names
English: Redear sunfish
español: Mojarra oreja roja
français: Crapet à oreilles rouges
中文: 小冠太阳鱼
The redear sunfish (Lepomis microlophus), also known as the shellcracker, Georgia bream, cherry gill, chinquapin, improved bream, and sun perch, is a freshwater fish in the family Centrarchidae and is native to the southeastern United States. Due to its popularity as a sport fish, it has been widely introduced across North America.
A redear sunfish captured in Montgomery County, Texas, USA.
Description
Redear sunfish generally resemble bluegill except for coloration and somewhat larger maximum size. The redear sunfish also has faint vertical bars traveling downwards from its dorsal.[3] It is dark-colored dorsally and yellow-green ventrally. Unlike bluegill, the male has a cherry-red edge on its operculum; females have orange coloration in this area. The adult fish are between 20 and 24 cm (7.9 and 9.4 in) in length. Max length is 43.2 cm (17.0 in), compared to a maximum of about 40 cm (16 in) for the bluegill. Redear sunfish on average reach about 0.45 kg (0.99 lb), also larger than the average bluegill.[4]
Habitat and range
Redear sunfish are native to the southeastern United States. They range from North Carolina to Florida, west to southern Illinois and Missouri, and south to the Rio Grande drainage in Texas.[5] However, this fish has been widely introduced to other locations such as the states of Ohio and Arizona.[citation needed]
In the wild, redear sunfish inhabit warm, quiet waters of lakes, ponds, streams, and reservoirs. They prefer to be near logs and vegetation, and tend to congregate in groups around these features. This sunfish is also located in many freshwater marsh wetlands.
Diet
The favorite food of this sunfish is snails, which it obtains by cracking their shells, hence this feisty gamefish's common name: shellcracker. These fish meander along lakebeds, seeking and cracking open snails and other shelled creatures. VanderKooy et al. (2000) observed that large L. microlophus predominantly focus on hard-shelled prey such as ostracods, hydrobiid snails and mussels throughout the entire year. In the same field investigation, it was observed that smaller fish tended to also consume zooplankton, amphipods, chironomid and ceratopongonid larvae and cladocerans, with varied distributions depending on the season.[6][7] They are also believed to feed on algae, aquatic worms,[8] copepoda,[8] midge larvae, ephemeropteran and odonata nymphs, crayfish, small fish, and fish eggs.[citation needed] Redear sunfish have thick pharyngeal teeth which allow them to crunch exoskeletons. They are even capable of opening small clams.[citation needed] The specialization of this species for the deep-water, mollusk-feeding niche allows it to be introduced to lakes without the risk of competition with fish that prefer shallower water or surface-feeding. In recent years, the stocking of redear has found new allies due to the fish's ability to eat quagga mussels, a prominent invasive species in many freshwater drainages.[9]
Reproduction
Male redear sunfish guarding eggs
During spawning, males congregate and create nests close together in colonies, and females visit to lay eggs. The redear sunfish may occasionally hybridize with other sunfish species.[10]
Fossil record
The redear sunfish is the first-known species of Centrarchidae based on fossil records, as old as 16.3 million years, dating back to the Middle Miocene.[11]
Relationship with humans
Redear sunfish is a popular panfish among recreational anglers. The IGFA all-tackle world record for the species stands at 2.83 kg (6 lb 4 oz) caught in 2021 from Lake Havasu in Arizona.[12]
References
NatureServe (2013). "Lepomis microlophus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2013: e.T202558A18230237. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T202558A18230237.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Lepomis microlophus". FishBase. December 2019 version.
Bosanko, David and Dan Johnson (2007). "Redear Sunfish". Fish of Michigan Field Guide. Cambridge, MN: Adventure Publications. pp. 148–49.
"Redear Sunfish : Species Breakdown". hookedinfishing.com. Retrieved 2022-06-09.
Gilbert, Carter Rowell; James D. Williams (2002). "Redear Sunfish". In Alfred A. Knopf (ed.). National Audubon Society Field Guide to Fishes: North America. New York. p. 347.
Katherine E. VanderKooy; Chet F. Rakocinski; Richard W. Heard (2000). "Trophic Relationships of Three Sunfishes (Lepomis spp.) in an Estuarine Bayou". Estuaries. 23 (5): 621–632.
"Lepomis microlophus (Redear sunfish)". CABI.
"Lepomis microlophus (Redear sunfish)". Animal Diversity Web.
Tavares, Stephanie (2009-11-09). "Popular sport fish could solve Lake Mead's clam infestation". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2009-11-20.
"Sunfish Hybrid ID Walk-Through". Koaw Nature. Retrieved 2022-04-06.
"Family Centrarchidae Cope 1868 (sunfish)". Paleobiology Database.
"Sunfish, redear". igfa.org. IGFA. Retrieved 13 May 2024.
Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Lepomis microlophus". FishBase. November 2005 version.
Ellis, Jack (1993). The Sunfishes-A Fly Fishing Journey of Discovery. Bennington, VT: Abenaki Publishers, Inc. ISBN 0-936644-17-6.
Rice, F. Philip (1964). America's Favorite Fishing-A Complete Guide to Angling for Panfish. New York: Harper Row.
Rice, F. Philip (1984). Panfishing. New York: Stackpole Books. ISBN 0-943822-25-4.
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