I was off base when I referred to these fish as big bluegills or gillzillas, until my friend Greg enlightened me. They actually are Redear sunfish and will readily take a small balanced leech style fly under an indicator. Here’s the difference. Redear sunfish have a more gold and green coloration with faint vertical bars, while bluegills have more yellow or orange coloration. The main difference between the two is their operculum colors. The bluegill features a deep blue or black color while the redear sunfish has red or orange tips near its head. I learn new stuff every day on the water… – Al Q
flies, sand & surf 
Red Ear or Bluegill – those are some fatso healthy slabs! Looks like endless fun.
they pull hard like giant surf perch…
better you than me… those pictures look like bluegill to me LOL
we have some big slabs like that in a couple of local stocked ponds… they can be tough to get at times on anything, but the most fun is when a hatch goes off and you can get them on top water.