[4] The longear sunfish is quite colorful, with an olive to rusty-brown back, bright orange belly and vermiculate blue-green bars on the sides of its head, the latter two features most pronounced in breeding males.

A unique characteristic of longear sunfish is their elongated operculum flap, giving an appearance of a "long ear".

[4] The species prefers densely vegetated, shallow waters in lakes, ponds, and sluggish streams.

Avoiding strong currents, longear sunfish are usually present in small to moderate flowing streams, rivers, and reservoirs.

The male makes and defends the nest, and fans the eggs to remove silt and other debris until the larvae hatch.

This may be due to the species' ability to travel throughout large bodies of water, thus avoiding dams and man-made interferences along smaller streams.

They prefer streams with a firm clay bottom or gravel with clear waters and they typically stay nearby aquatic vegetation.

They spend most of their time near aquatic vegetation, or other forms of cover such as roots, brush piles, and undercut banks.

[12] During breeding seasons they are generally found in shallower, warmer waters near the sources of streams which have pools.

Control of non-point source pollution from urbanization and agricultural practices is needed for this species, which is intolerant of turbidity.

Habitat degradation and loss from shoreline and watershed agriculture threatens this species which prefers clear, shallow streams with aquatic vegetation.

[7] Sedimentation and agricultural runoff also threatens this species which is believed to have been lost from many locations because of the effects of soil erosion.

Refuge areas in these two states are being created along lakes and streams in order to protect the few, disjunct locations where this species live.

If man-made disturbances continue to disrupt shorelines then agencies may begin to see an increased reduction in the Lepomis megalotis abundance nationwide.

The IGFA all tackle world record for the species stands at 0.79 kg (1 lb 12 oz) caught from Elephant Butte Lake in New Mexico in 1985.