# Bluegill?



## fishman123 (Apr 1, 2005)

can i keep a bluegill alive in an aquarium?
if i feed it small minows and worms? 
thanks!


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

Actually I've tried this with a yellow perch, and yes, you can... but expect it to live its full life in your tank. Once taken out of its natural environment, you can't put it back. For that bluegill, I'd get at least a 55 gallon. If you want a couple I'd get a 75 gallon tank and put 3-4 in there. You can feed it a number of things, including the minnows and worms and crickets. I would highly discourage, however, getting live fish from a bait store. Instead, buy some guppies or better yet, mollys and quarentine them for a few weeks in a holding tank (10 gallons is fine). You may even want to get a 40 breeder and breed some. Once the fish gets used to you, you can feed him much better stuff than live foods such as: peices of raw shrimp, fish, and other seafoods, or bloodworms, krill, and other things to vary up his diet. 
On one more note: always cycle an aquarium before putting fish in. This process may take 3-6 weeks. Get your water tested often, tests should look as follows
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10-30
pH 6.5-7.5
Also remember, when you feed live foods, expect a mess... do frequent water changes (once a week to twice a month 20% )


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## cameraman_2 (Mar 28, 2005)

I use to have a little blue gill and he lived for several years in a 1 gallon fish bowl, poor thing. I didn't know much about fish keeping at teh time although I did have an undergravel filter on the bowl and he was a very small fish that I caught out of the creek behind my parents on a fly rod. He didn't grow much so what ever size tank you put him in that is what he will grow to. I feed my flake fish food and he didn't care at all. Good Luck


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

eeek... please don't stunt your fish by getting a small tank. Several years is not good for a bluegill, they can live up to 20 in captivity and get 12-13 inches in length! Please, PLEASE get a tank thats suited for them best.


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## Mr Aquarium (Jan 18, 2005)

Well let me say a couple things here, You can feed live bait from a bait shop, minnows are in very clean water, and will not live long if you get a full dozon "which ends up most times to be about 3 dozon"
they need cold water and a ton of air, You could guess that by the way they run the tank at the bait shop.
One other thing, I have known several people besides myself, and you really need to keep the tank clean Pond fish are in, as Allot of the tanks I have seen with pond fish always end up with cotton fungus or something else along that line.
One tank was a guy I use to work for and His tank was very clean and his fish still got it.
Nightcrawlers are the best bet along with about any bug that you can get, flys, crickets, ect, as well as pellet type foods.
I'm not sure, but BlueGills maybe related to the cichlid as Sunfish are.


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## cameraman_2 (Mar 28, 2005)

I kind of think they are related to cichlids also however in my fish book it said they were a different class and also considered a cold water fish. If you planned on raising some, I think you would need to drop the tank water down very cold like what happens in nature for a period of time and then raise it back up very slowly and when it gets to a certain temp they will mate in shallow water. The female blue gill is the one that will protect the eggs and she will clear an area of gravel for that purpose.


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## ron v (Feb 24, 2005)

Bluegills are verrrrrry aggressive. Would put most cichlids ( red devels, etc.) to shame. Please keep that in mind if you attempt to keep more than one.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

Bluegills are not a coldwater fish though they do endoure winters, they like it warm (72-78)... if you want them to mate, you will need to keep it cooler (65-68) for a few months then gradually raise the temp. Also I'm sure you will need a different type of substraite as they often have a sandy/silt over gravel when they breed in the wild. They are also not overly aggressive, (but would definately kick most cichlids a$$) but they do need their own territory if you get more than one (which is why 75 gallons is a good size tank for it. I've kept them in pond settings very easily as well (about 100 gallons) with a crappie and some small perch.


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## ron v (Feb 24, 2005)

I don't know about pond settings and your experience may be different from mine but IMO a group of four will not work in a 75. When they reach about 6", you will have one male. Of cource there are several different species called "bluegill" I think. Maybe we are talking about two diff. fish??? The one I had several years ago killed a red devel that was a good two inches larger.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

True bluegills are part of the sunfish family, Centrarchidae. It normally resides in shallow waters of lakes ponds and streams east of the rockies. 
They look like this:
http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/water/fhp/fish/3dblgill.htm
and here is a website on someone who has kept them in a tank... 
http://railrunner42.tripod.com/


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## Guest (Apr 2, 2005)

my grandparents keep 2 bluegill in their pond with koi and goldffish and they dont bother anyone. you also dont NEED to feed them live fish. they do fine on earthworms and small bugs.
bluegills aren't a coldwater of warmwater species....they live in many lakes and ponds and rivers all over the country. you don't need to fluctuate the temperate either. once a fish is acclimated, it will be fine.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

Scuba kid, I only suggested fluctuating the water temp because someone mentioned breeding  yet they prefer warm water.


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## Mr Aquarium (Jan 18, 2005)

Well I wouldn't say they need to be in warm or cold water either way, they can live in any temp water, from the heat of summer to the bitter cold of winter, ponds and rivers ect ect, 
I won't get into if they are agressive of not, But I know they seem pretty easy going if you don;t over crowd them.


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## cameraman_2 (Mar 28, 2005)

Actually the fish will swim to deeper waters to where it is cooler when the temperature rises in the heat of the summer or at least hear in Arkansas they do that.


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