Technical Notes: Methods for Culturing Bluegill in the Laboratory

Abstract

Pond culture of bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) does not provide researchers with an adequate means of obtaining eggs or larvae for laboratory studies. Intensive laboratory culture of bluegill larvae through their critical period (when they switch from endogenous to exogenous feeding), however, presents unique problems, requiring different approaches from those used for rearing many other fish species. Consequently, ecological and toxicological studies of larval bluegills are uncommon. We present a laboratory protocol for maintaining bluegill brood stock capable of producing eggs and larvae throughout the year. A unique automatically feeding, self-cleaning rearing chamber for larval bluegills and the use of Artificial Plankton Microcapsules® as the first exogenous food source are discussed. Initiation of exogenous feeding is the key to successful larval bluegill culture in the laboratory. Successful laboratory culture methods will facilitate future larval bluegill research.