I've had one in a 60 gallon aquarium for about 2 years now He was approximately 6 inches when I first put him in there and is now nearly 12 inches. I feed him a diet of 5 to 8 red worms daily with an additional dozen of small flathead minnows throughout the month just to keep him active and happy by chasing prey. He is very aggressive and will absolutely take worms right from my hand. He seems to be very curious too as he will always come to greet me when I peer into the tank. These fish make great pets and are very entertaining just be ready for a large grocery bill as they definitely have large appetites.
Green sunfish are the most awesome native fish to keep. I had one that would dance with my wife if she walked up and wiggled like a fish.. he would mimic her but never me.... He only waited for food from me lol.
Had him for about 2-3 years. Caught him in a creek around 2 inches long only grey to about 8-9 inches before he passed. Think I got some infected live bait on that ordeal...
I caught 2 wild sunfish out of a pond with the intention of them being 'test' fish for the setup and cannon-fodder for a larger fish like a smallmouth bass. Never ended up getting a bass. But the more dominant of the 2 sunfish bullied the other so badly i released the weaker one back into the wild. That was a year ago. Now that baby sunfish is huge and readily hand-feeds. He shares a tank with a pike cichlid, wild crayfish, and a random catfish to eat scraps.
Catch a grasshopper and hold it by its legs. Hold it below the water. One of them will most likely get brave enough to grab it from you. They're definitely comfortable with you because they're greeting you when you get to the tank.
Little cubes of raw beef liver are a great supplement. With raw you get these peptides you would otherwise lose by cooking it that really help them grow. Caveat is that you have to freeze it for 3 weeks at zero F to kill all pathogens.
I feel like male green sunfish have more color when they are smaller another cool one if you have them in your area is the orange spotted sunfish I've only ever caught one on a pole but I've caught a few in minnow traps
My green sunfish are getting more colorful the bigger they get but I've seen some mondo ones that looked muted. Unfortunately we don't have orange spotted here but they sure are gorgeous!
@@dock6457 mine rarely eat live food but they eat cichlid color enhancing pellets al mm ost daily. You want to have food with carotenes in it to promote color (same stuff that makes flamingos pink).
Assuming they are wild caught you could feed pinhead crickets and maybe chopped up red worms. Also mosquito larvae, daphnia, etc. I would also offer them cichlid pellets or flakes to try and get them trained now.
I've had one in a 60 gallon aquarium for about 2 years now
He was approximately 6 inches when I first put him in there and is now nearly 12 inches.
I feed him a diet of 5 to 8 red worms daily with an additional dozen of small flathead minnows throughout the month just to keep him active and happy by chasing prey.
He is very aggressive and will absolutely take worms right from my hand.
He seems to be very curious too as he will always come to greet me when I peer into the tank.
These fish make great pets and are very entertaining just be ready for a large grocery bill as they definitely have large appetites.
Wow! Do yours eat any prepared foods like pellets or anything?
@@CGLFishing I have some too,they eat insects,worms,frogs,small lizards,crawfish,even tiny snakes.
@@bugloverspiderlover8490 wow! That's awesome!
@@fellowduck3479 definitely not. 55 gallon would be the absolute minimum for one of those. 75 much better.
How fast do they grow?
I have 3 males who are about 10 inches right now and they're some aggressive little boogers!!😂 good luck with yours!!!
Man they definitely can be! Same to you!
Green sunfish are the most awesome native fish to keep. I had one that would dance with my wife if she walked up and wiggled like a fish.. he would mimic her but never me.... He only waited for food from me lol.
Had him for about 2-3 years. Caught him in a creek around 2 inches long only grey to about 8-9 inches before he passed. Think I got some infected live bait on that ordeal...
That's so cool! Sorry to hear he passed. Unfortunately mine did to. Thinking I will try again with a single individual this year.
@@CGLFishing how long is their lifespan usually?
@@VictorWembeyana I'm not sure. I imagine around 6 years or so.
I caught 2 wild sunfish out of a pond with the intention of them being 'test' fish for the setup and cannon-fodder for a larger fish like a smallmouth bass. Never ended up getting a bass. But the more dominant of the 2 sunfish bullied the other so badly i released the weaker one back into the wild. That was a year ago. Now that baby sunfish is huge and readily hand-feeds. He shares a tank with a pike cichlid, wild crayfish, and a random catfish to eat scraps.
They are super cool fish! And some have great colors!
Can you house different species of them together? Such as the bluegill, redear, redbreast, and green sunfish?
Just came across ur video bro., I just got 5 baby green sunfish I just put in the tank to grow up with my other cichlids.
Nice vid bro. I subbed
Thanks!! Going to do an update on this soon.
Catch a grasshopper and hold it by its legs. Hold it below the water. One of them will most likely get brave enough to grab it from you. They're definitely comfortable with you because they're greeting you when you get to the tank.
Ooh good idea! Grass hopper may be more enticing than crickets even.
@@CGLFishing could also try a worm
@@z-fishing-adventures I did alittle later in the video. They are that right out of my fingers!
@@CGLFishing nice!
Little cubes of raw beef liver are a great supplement. With raw you get these peptides you would otherwise lose by cooking it that really help them grow. Caveat is that you have to freeze it for 3 weeks at zero F to kill all pathogens.
Good to know! Thanks!
Great video. How big is that tank? How long are the green sunfish?
It's 150 gallons. I am going to post an update video soon!
Great video. What temperature is that tank?
I just keep it at room temp. House is at 67 and the tank runs a couple degrees higher I think.
I feel like male green sunfish have more color when they are smaller another cool one if you have them in your area is the orange spotted sunfish I've only ever caught one on a pole but I've caught a few in minnow traps
My green sunfish are getting more colorful the bigger they get but I've seen some mondo ones that looked muted. Unfortunately we don't have orange spotted here but they sure are gorgeous!
I wonder if it has to do more with mating than age I've tried keeping them before and they never really colored up for me like in the wild
@@dock6457 could definitely be the case! Diet, substrate, and lighting can also all effect color.
This is true I'm guessing live food would go a long way with these guys
@@dock6457 mine rarely eat live food but they eat cichlid color enhancing pellets al mm ost daily. You want to have food with carotenes in it to promote color (same stuff that makes flamingos pink).
Name it fishy 😂
🤣🤣
Did you catch these fish??
Me and my brother yes!
The hulk
What would you feed small sunfish. I have a dozen or so around 1” long.
Assuming they are wild caught you could feed pinhead crickets and maybe chopped up red worms. Also mosquito larvae, daphnia, etc. I would also offer them cichlid pellets or flakes to try and get them trained now.
How do u get the sun fish so aggressive, how long does it take?
What do you mean? They just kinda are aggressive. They get more aggressive when they are thinking about spawning for sure though.
@@CGLFishing right when u put them in the tank were they eating
@@TailsandTrailsFishing ohhhh! Pretty much lol they didn't need long to figure out pellets were food! Other species take longer ime.
@@CGLFishing mine aren’t eating yet but I got them yesterday so I’m sure they will eat tomorrow
@@TailsandTrailsFishing they definitely will take a little time to settle in.
Captain Greenie ....
Your aquarium is beautiful.
Good video.
Thanks!
Really like mine but they are very high bioload 😅
Mine don't mess the tank up too bad but I have lots of plants assisting with filtration!
@@CGLFishing I do too but I have mines paired with a bullhead in a 60gal and he’ll often uproot plants
@@kunaiwithchain5278 try some houseplants with just their roots in the water!
I wanna do this but my pet store doesn’t have any and it’s illegal to take these home alive so I’m stuckkkk
Check out some online sources. Zimmerman's and Jonahs are 2 that sell native fish.
How big of a tank
150 gallons!
He is a green sunfish. I would name him David Banner aka.the incredible hulk🤣🤟😎
Ooh that is an awesome idea haha
@@CGLFishing I try🤣
How can are you gonna catch him in the fish tank
I used a net and some patience!
No like I mean if you want the world record
@@22christyking ohhhh I won't actually try to get the world record. Just trying to grow him to world record size.
Well to you get anything for doing that
Because I have a state record green sunfish that I have grown out for 2 year his at 1 pound
How many gallons is that tank?
150
Name him sunfish model x like the tesla
If you really want to get the green sunfish bigger..first get rid of the rest of the fish in the aquarium
Unfortunately can't do that but if I can get the space he may get his own tank.
More water changes would get them to be bigger, not less fish. But honestly with a tank that big I don't think it'd be worth the struggle lol