help me identify this fish

[Dryrod]

[left][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]Now you are making me work. LOL Here is an overview of your cracker fish.[/size][/#008000][/font]
[font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]The redear sunfish (Lepomis microlophus), also known as the shellcracker, Georgia bream, cherry gill, chinquapin, improved bream, and sun perch, is native to the southeastern [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]United States[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4], but since it is a popular [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sport_fishing"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]sport fish[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4] it has been [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Introduced_species"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]introduced[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4] to bodies of water all over [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_America"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]North America[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]. It generally resembles the [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluegill"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]bluegill[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4] except for coloration and somewhat larger size. It is dark-colored dorsally and yellow-green ventrally. The male has a cherry-red edge on its [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operculum_%28fish%29"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]operculum[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]; females have orange coloration in this area. The adult fish is between 20 and 24 cm in length. Max length is 43.2 cm. compared to a maximum of about 40 cm for the blegill.[/size][/#008000][/font]
[font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]The favorite food of this species is [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snail"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]snails[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]. These fish are bottomfeeders, meandering along lakebeds seeking and cracking open snails and other shelled creatures. The fish has thick pharyngeal teeth, hard, movable plates in its throat, which allow it to crunch [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exoskeleton"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]exoskeletons[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]. It is even capable of opening small [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clam"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]clams[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]. The specialization of this species for the deep-water, [/size][/#008000][/font][url "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mollusk"][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]mollusk[/size][/#008000][/font][/url][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]-feeding niche allows it to be introduced to lakes without the risk of competition with fish that prefer shallower water or surface-feeding.[/size][/#008000][/font]
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[center][inline "Red ear sunfish.jpg"]
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