A Bluegill Silver Find

Happy Monday everyone. I've never been a big Monday fan, but it seems to come along every week anyway... I have been working on sprucing up the yard this last week which is a lot harder than it used to be when I was twenty-one. As a matter of fact a lot of things were easier when I was twenty-one! I'm still waiting for the medical miracle drug that makes you twenty years younger.

Over the last couple weeks I have been sharing some items that I picked up in a jewelry shop in Long Beach, California. The owner buys silver and gold from people, most of which ends up being sent off the be melted down. The items he things I might like he keeps around for a few weeks. Sometimes he has nothing interesting at all and other times there's more nice stuff than fits in my budget. Some time back I picked up a couple of interesting silver rounds with some fish on them, they were pure silver and an ounce a piece so I bought them and only paid spot which was great!

These were interesting primarily because they came from a club I've never heard of before, the North American Fishing Club. If you know anything about it feel free to chime in! The one I'll share to day it the bluegill fish:

About the round:
Diameter 39 mm
Weight: One Troy ounce
Metal: 99.9% silver
Mint: Unknown
Strike: Proof Like

The North American Fishing Club was founded in 1988. At some point they produced a bunch of solid silver and silver plated rounds. I was unable to figure out the mint that produced them, but they did good work. From what I've read it was a club you buy a lifetime membership and you got a monthly journal and some other perks. They were bought out by Scout media and things apparently changed once Scout was acquired by some Russian investors. Scout shortly after declared bankruptcy and that was the end of the fishing club.

You can however pick up these silver rounds still, I personally wouldn't pay much more than spot on these. I just don't see a huge collectors market in the future because they are pretty obscure. Just make sure if you do buy some that it is the pure silver and not the silver plated version!

Bluegill

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flyfisherpro.com

What I love about fish and animal coins it I get to share a little something about the species. Bluegill are native to North America basically everyplace east of the Rocky Mountains. However they have been introduced to almost every continent except Australia and Antarctica and have become an invasive species in many places. They love shallow ponds with a lot of aquatic plants and have been found in some salt water bays indicating they can tolerate some salt water which is unusual for a freshwater fish. They can grow up to 16 inches (41 cm) and up to 4 1/2 pounds (2 kg.)

They are very popular among fisherman since they are a great tasting fish. That's part of the reason they have been spread to so many places around the globe. As a kid I used to fish for these at a pond that was stocked with them not too far from home. They are a lot of fun to catch and like to hide in the aquatic plants and under logs. They eat small insects, small fish, and even plants if it's short on food supplies.

They are fun to catch, so if you are a fisherman and haven't given them a try I highly recommend them!

That will just about wrap up my post for today. I hope you enjoyed enjoyed the silver round and learning a little about bluegills. If you have any questions, suggestions, or comments please feel free to leave them below. Have a great Monday!

And since I am posting in the #freecompliments community I just wanted to remind everyone to take some time today to be kind. A little kindness can make a huge difference in someone's life. Please check out the community and consider joining us!

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