When I went to the lake, I saw this little guy, about 5" long, laying on the bank dead.  Is this a baby crappie (I think it's a crappie but I ain't sure) or is it some sort or baitfish?

 

Thanks for the help folks.

 

Bazoo

Dried out crappie would be my guess

That looks like a barfed up dried out small bluegill. 

Bluegill

A lady that works at the lake this came from confirmed it was a crappie. I was thinking so, but I was also thinking perhaps a baitfish of some sort. I was sure it wasn't a bluegill or sunfish.

Uhhhh….ok.

3 hours ago, Bazoo said:

I was sure it wasn't a bluegill or sunfish.

The body structure and the fin placement all point to a member of the Sunfish family...which includes Crappie. Bluegill are a sunfish species...just lots of people want to separate them from Pumpkinseeds, Green, etc.

Being in such bad shape, determining exact species is problematic given that the color has mostly washed (digested/rotted) out.

No dispresect meant to anyone. I picked it up and looked at it on both sides, and the color on the other side was the same. I don't see how the color would disappear if it was a bluegill.  I know there are bluegill and other breams in this lake, green and redear sunfish. Not sure about pumpkinseeds. And of course crappie. After looking at pictures of both crappie and bluegill, It sure resembles a crappie more to me than a bluegill. There are also various shad, including golden carp, which is what I first thought it was when I saw it. 

Bluegill aka Mr blue mcgillis 

After looking at pictures of bluegill a while, I can see it, so I'm not so sure now. What throws me off though I guess is the eye. Looks like a crappie eye to me.

The mouth, the fins, the body shape, and coloration would all point to bluegill, probably a female. Really doesn’t matter in this case - Just make sure if you plan to keep fish that you are good at identification.

I'm not the best and IDing them yet. I know crappie when its fresh. Bluegill and the other bream are a bit harder for me to distinguish. I haven't been around them that much.

 

As @MN Fisher stated, determining species by color "is problematic given that the color has mostly washed (digested/rotted) out"

 

Sunfish have a spiny portion and a soft portion of their dorsal and anal fins.

Count the spines on the anal fin.

Crappie have 5-6 anal fin spines, Bluegill have 3.

Count the spines on the dorsal fin.

White Crappie have 5-6.

Black Crappie have 7-8.

Bluegill have 10.

 

Buy a good fish field guide.

Thanks bass302. The pic clearly shows 3 anal fin spins. So it would appear to be a bluegill. I've been researching it some and I find pictures that support it being a bluegill as well. I'm still uncertain, but I am leaning bluegill now.

Juvenile bluegill are often very pale or drab colored and become more washed out when they die. Crappie tend to have more rounded tails while bluegills have pointed tails, like the fish in the picture. 

The other option I thought because of the stripe on the eye would be a Flier, but I believe they have much larger fins, even as juveniles. I've never seen one in person, let alone caught one, so I have no experience with them other than pictures and reading about them. 

 

My vote would be for a plain ol' bluegill. 

@Bluebasser86,

I thought it might be a Flier until I counted anal fin spines.  I looked up Flier and they have 7-8 anal fin spines.  I live in California, we don't have Fliers here (we don't have a lot of the fish that are in other parts of the US).

Another thought:  Maybe we need a "What Fish Is This"  pinned to this topic area?

 

It’s a bluegill…

Definitely a bluegill.

Fish lose coloration when dead and out of water but regardless, that's the physique of a bluegill.

I appreciate everyones input. I never would have guessed bluegill, but I was hung up on the coloration more than anything. I appreciate the reminder to count spines and look for other physical characteristics and not just rely on the coloring.