Tremendous fighting ability and palatability combine to offer fishermen an excellent sport fish. Sunshine bass are very aggressive feeders and take live bait quite readily. Although this species can be harvested year-round, present knowledge of the feeding habits of sunshine bass shows they prefer to school and feed vigorously during colder months of the year. The redbreast sunfish is another popular game fish that dwells in river systems. This fish is easily recognized by the bright red patch on its breast and long gill covers.
Males have a more distinct patch than females.
The best time to catch redbreast is during the spring on small spinner baits, earthworms, crickets and artificial popping bugs. Coloration, fighting ability and palatability mark the redbreast as one of Florida's most popular game fish. If you are fond of river fishing, Florida has two game fish that are common in rivers and offer excellent fishing experiences. This fish gets its name from its habit of staying close to cypress knees, tree roots and other shallow water habitats. Stumpknockers can be easily caught on warm spring days by accurately casting small spinner baits against the stream bank and slowly returning them to deeper water.