Sunfish: Bottom-Fishing Secrets, Super Live-Bait Presentations
Story and Photos By Keith Sutton

For nearly an hour, I'd been staring at the motionless bobber floating above a soggy cricket. It hadn't moved — not even a nibble.

"This can't be happening," I thought. Just last month I hauled 50 bragging-sized bluegills out of this same spot. On this day, however, the bluegills wouldn't bite. I thought maybe the catfish would. I reeled in my line and removed the bobber. A fat worm replaced the cricket. Split shot were added.

I made a cast to another spot, and the bait sunk to the lake's bottom hardpan 10 feet down. This time a fish quickly discovered my offering. My rod tip twitched then bowed. I set the hook, and the spunky creature on the other end raced away. On my ultralight tackle, it came across like a heavyweight. It battled valiantly, but I soon gained the upper hand and brought the fish to the bank.

As I lifted it from the water, however, I didn't see the gray hue and broad maw of the catfish I expected. This fish was a blaze of colors, saucer-shaped and dimple-mouthed. It was a shellcracker — a redear sunfish. I removed the hook and put the big bream on my stringer, grinning at the realization of what I had found.

My second cast was an instant replay of the first. I soon had another shellcracker for the stringer, then another and another and another. When the hot July sun finally settled behind the wooded hilltops, I had 34 shellcrackers in all — not too bad for a day that started out to be a waterhaul.

These redear sunfish have many nicknames, including shellcracker, chinquapin, stump-knocker, yellow bream, tupelo bream, cherry gill and government-improved bream. But regardless of what you call them, these big sunnies are among the finest fighters for their size in freshwater. Fishing for them can be addictive.

Shellcracker Traits
If bream were placed in divisions like boxers, the shellcracker would be a heavyweight contender. The largest member of its tribe, this popular sportfish delivers a knockout punch that'll put your bobber down for the 10-count, maybe longer. It's a George Foreman among sunfish.

Two pounds is exceptionally large for most sunfish, but some Southern lakes produce 2-pound shellcrackers with amazing regularity. Redears more than 3 pounds have been reported in Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee and Texas, while anglers in Florida, Alabama, Virginia and North Carolina have caught redears topping 4 pounds. The all-tackle world record from South Carolina tipped the scales at a whopping 5 pounds, 7 ounces.

Shellcrackers aren't as colorful as bluegills, but they are handsome fish. The back shines with flashy olive-green hues fading to silvery-green sides speckled with brown or green. A yellow wash colors the belly on most adult fish.

The "redear" name is a practical designation based on the scarlet hue tinging the gill flaps. Adult redears have black gill flaps with a reddish, crescent-shaped border. Males are more brightly colored than females and sport a bright, cherry-red border. Females and young usually have a pale orange border.

Another characteristic is the set of hard, toothlike grinders or "shellcrackers" in the throat. These allow redears to crunch the shells of the tiny mollusks that comprise most of their diet.

Although native to the southeastern United States, the shellcracker has been widely introduced elsewhere. Its range now also includes most of Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana, and portions of Virginia, California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and Wyoming.

Shellcrackers often congregate around stumps, roots, logs, standing timber and green aquatic vegetation such as water lilies, coontail and elodea. They prefer deeper water than most other sunfish and commonly are found at depths of 25 to 35 feet. Small snails, fingernail clams, worms, insect larvae and other bottom-dwelling creatures are favorite foods, but shellcrackers also eat insects and other creatures.

Shellcrackers are delectable table fare, too. Their fillets tend to be thicker than those of similar-sized bluegills, with all the flaky white tastiness that makes that species a favorite for home fish fries.

Fishing Tactics
For many anglers, challenge is the impetus for targeting shellcrackers. Bluegills and other sunnies are abundant and usually easy to catch. Shellcrackers, on the other hand, are less common in most waters and almost always demand more attention to find and coax. Therefore, to catch a shellcracker is to sprinkle spice on an angling banquet, turning the commonplace into the memorable.

To use another analogy, the shellcracker is like the golden ring snatched while riding the carnival carousel — a prize that brings special jubilation when finally held in the hand.

You must remember two important facts if you want to score consistently on these burly bream. First, shellcrackers are bottom feeders. If you're presenting your bait anywhere except very near or on the bottom, you'll miss most fish. Most anglers expect to catch shellcrackers using bluegill tactics, but rarely does this work. Bottom-fishing is the only way to regularly catch shellcrackers.

Second, be aware that shellcrackers are very finicky. They're much less likely to be caught on artificial lures than other panfish. Even when fishing with live bait, you must determine the specific bait they want and the best way to present it.

For example, a friend and I recently went fishing for shellcrackers and used identical ultralight spinning outfits while bottom-fishing with worms. We were fishing the same beds of spawning fish. The problem was my buddy was catching lots of shellcrackers and I wasn't catching any.

"I can't figure it out," I told him. "You're catching dozens of fish, and I can't get a nibble. And we're doing everything the same."

"Not everything," he said. "You have a split shot on the line. I don't."

I didn't think the addition of a single tiny split shot could make any difference. But when I removed it from the line, I started catching fish.

The lesson is if you think you're doing everything right but aren't catching fish, try changing your presentation. Even a small variation like a split shot may keep these persnickety devils from biting.

A similar situation occurred when a buddy and I were fishing for shellcrackers on another lake. This time I was catching plenty, while he came up empty-handed. Again, both of us were using the same rigs, same bait and same tackle. At first, neither of us could figure out what was wrong. Then I noticed my buddy was pinching his worms in half before hooking them.

"Use a whole worm next time," I suggested.

"Why?" he asked.

"Just try it," I said. "You're pinching yours in half, and I'm using a whole worm. Maybe that's the difference."

Sure enough, when he changed to whole worms, he started catching shellcrackers. For some reason I still don't understand, the shellcrackers that day wouldn't eat just half a worm. So keep in mind that shellcrackers are fussy beyond compare, and you have to vary your presentation until you figure out exactly what they want.

Tackle And Baits
Most shellcracker aficionados use a canepole or jigging pole, especially when fishing lily pads or other tight-knit cover. But when shellcrackers are in more open water, using ultralight spinning or spincast tackle compounds the thrills of catching them.

A small light-action rod-and-reel combo spooled with 2- to 6-pound test line works great. Tie on a size 10 to 6 Carlisle (cricket) hook, add a small split shot or two, bait up and then either toss the rig out on the bottom or position a small bobber so the bait rests barely above the bottom. Many shellcracker fans use a sensitive quill-type bobber that tips over the moment a shellcracker lifts a bait, making it easy to detect light bites.

The key phrase is "keep it on the bottom." Shellcrackers root for food like miniature underwater hogs and seldom look upward for something to eat. A bait floating 12 inches off the bottom won't catch half as many fish as one dropped smack dab on the gravel.

Because shellcrackers aren't particularly susceptible to lures, most anglers use live bait. Worms, grass shrimp and crickets are probably the top three in popularity, but wax worms, mealworms, leeches, catalpa worms and bits of crayfish tail or mussel meat also get their attention.

If you simply can't resist trying lures, curly-tailed jigs seem among the best, perhaps because their undulating action looks somewhat like a worm or insect larva twisting through the water. Stick to the smallest sizes and hop the lure across the bottom with a slow, steady "lift, fall, lift, fall" retrieve.

When possible, use slider-type jigheads where the lead is encased in soft plastic. Shellcrackers are quick to spit out hard items found in their food probably because many creatures they eat are encased in shells. They seem to hold a jig with a rubber-encased head a little longer because of its fleshy feel, allowing extra time to set the hook.

Also, if plain jigs aren't producing, try tipping your lure with a tiny strip of panfish pork rind for added visual attraction. Or use a marriage of live bait and artificials. A jig tipped with a redworm or wax worm will nearly always outperform an unadorned lure.

While shellcrackers are persnickety and hard to catch at times, no self-respecting redear angler would have it any other way. The challenge of catching them is what makes these panfish special. The possibility of catching a sunfish topping 11/2 or 2 pounds makes it all worthwhile. Don't let summer pass without giving them a try.