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TALE WATERS & TIDES · POCKET FISHING GUIDE
ARKANSAS SPORTFISH
COMMON

Bluegill

GO100SCORE
FARM PONDS
🔥 SPAWN NOW

Every angler's first fish. Still the best kids' catch in the state.

SIZE
6–9 in
MAX
12 in
WEIGHT
Up to 2 lbs
HABITAT
PondsLakesRivers
Any warm-water body in Arkansas.
DIET
Insects, larvae, tiny minnows, worms.
BEST BAITS
Red worms · Crickets · Tiny poppers
SEASONAL PATTERN
🌱SPRING
BEST☀️SUMMER
🍂FALL
❄️WINTER
Summer: PEAK — full moon beds, 2–4 ft.
ANGLER INTEL · RIGHT NOWHIGH CONFIDENCE
DEPTH
2–6 ft
shallow cover
TIMING
Any time today — steady bite
TOP LURE · LURE
Red worms
reaction strikes on bed — aggressive
TACKLE
Cane pole to ultralight, 4 lb line
TECHNIQUE · Fly-fish the bed colonies — small popper on 3wt
ANGLER STATS
SPAWN 67–85°F TEMP MATCH
BITE
90
FIGHT
35
STEALTH
25
FUN FACT
Male bluegills fan gravel beds in colonies of dozens — a circle of saucers six feet across. Find one and you have fish for hours.
STATUS
Secure
Native · Centrarchidae
PFG SIGNAL · EST80°F · Lake Monticello● GO 100
YOUR CARD · ACTIONSNOT YET COLLECTED
🪪 ID marks
  • Solid black ear flap
  • Vertical bars
  • Deep, round body
💡 Tips
  • Fish the bed colonies
  • Smaller hook than you think
  • Full moon = beds

🌙 Lunar profile

MED-HIGH Lunar ImpactBest phases: Full Moon
☀️ Daytime
Shallow bedding areas in spring. Full Moon concentrates spawning activity May–July. Target gravel flats in 1–4 ft.
🌙 Nighttime
Less aggressive after dark; focus on pre-dawn and dusk windows within 3 days of Full Moon.
🔗 Source: AGFC Randy Zellers: 'focus on the days before and after the Full Moon' for bream bedding — Arkansas.com