Found this little guy floating in the water this weekend.

 

Eastern Nebraska reservoir.

 

About 2" long.

 

???

 

looks like some type of bluegill that lost a lot of color. 

I found one that looks almost exactly like that in MA the last week, a bass spit it up. Pretty sure it's a gill that's been bleached by stomach acid.

Juvenile Blue Gill 

Pretty common to see lighter (paler) colored Bluegill here in PA lakes. Not just juvenile sizes. I’m no panfish expert by a long shot but color my differ by surrounding or aggression levels as that of bass. 
 

My two grandsons have caught many variations of the PA Sunfish family. Always a new one coming along it seems. Here in PA we have some lakes with size moratoriums on bluegills. Fun on a fly rod. 
 

I’d bet it he were alive he’d be pretty light in color is what you have there. 

Young bluegill 

Blue mcgillis

22 hours ago, DaubsNU1 said:

Found this little guy floating in the water this weekend.

 

Eastern Nebraska reservoir.

 

About 2" long.

 

???

 

We have a lot of gills colored like yours, MB has you covered if you wanna match.

 

scott

 

10 hours ago, softwateronly said:

We have a lot of gills colored like yours, MB has you covered if you wanna match.

 

scott

 

Great post. Nice looking bait. I have yet fish that yet. But many of my crankbaits are very bluegill like because the lake here at home bluegill and gizzard Shad are prime forage. 
 

Don’t know how these work out for you guys but these live image baits that are out there, Rapala has them, LiveImage Brand, even Cabela’s has a line of them. It’s like a real picture somehow processed onto a hardbaits. I CAN’T DO CRAP WITH THEM. Channel cats on the river occasionally love them. I’ve stopped fishing them for quite some time and would never buy one again. But could just be me. They don’t work. 
 

The original old school Rapala bluegill (still available) being very very productive. I have a couple of them that I faded by letting sunlight hit them. Being As productive. 6th Sense, Lucky Craft, Googan all have great patterns that depict a bluegill. They don’t call it bluegill but some corny nickname for their stuff. Bandit use to have some great patterns looking like bluegill variations. Even Special run colors, but I think that company is in the toilet these days. SPRO may have some, I use their crawdad patterns. 
 

If I want to try a new crankbait (bluegill) I look for the light pink, light purple, a matted light grey through it, I’m in favor of the dot on the side. 

Young female Bluegill.

Tom