Bass Bluegill Hybrid?

[hawghunter24]

My girlfriend and I went out fishing today in my pond and she caught this unusual looking fish. It was shaped like a bass and had a mouth much larger than a regular bluegill of its size. It was probably between 4-5" long and as you can see I've easily got my thumb in its mouth. I've never heard of a cross between a LM and a bluegill...

[trout fanatic]

Looks like a green sunfish.

[Larry Richards]

Thats a warmouth (rock bass)

[jdmidwest]

Looks like a greenie to me, they attack and fight like a bass but taste like a bluegill.

[RSBreth]

Green Sunfish.

Green Sunfish

[eric1978]

Green sunfish, no doubter.

[Geoff]

Thats a warmouth (rock bass)

warmouth and rock are two completely different fish.

What you have caught is a green sunfish.

[trizkid]

green sunfish.....for sure

[hawghunter24]

Thanks for the quick responses guys. I thought there was only bluegill in that pond.

[Al Agnew]

It often seems to be a mystery how green sunfish get into ponds...I've heard people say their eggs hitchhike on heron legs, duck legs, etc. But I doubt that. Chances are that somebody threw a few in, but it's also possible that, if the pond is fairly close to a permanent flow stream, they could make their way into the pond during floods when it's overflowing. If there are both males and females, they will reproduce quickly and may get stunted pretty quickly, but they will also hybridize with bluegill, and if the pond has enough fishing pressure or enough predators (bass), the hybrids can get pretty big.