Geographic range
The 2023 Alabama checklist places the species in Gulf-draining systems from Lake Pontchartrain east to the Choctawhatchee River, as well as Georgia’s Atlantic-draining Altamaha system. Within Alabama, it distinguishes these fish from longear sunfish populations in the far northwestern Tennessee River basin.
Sources: Marine and freshwater fishes of Alabama: a revised checklist and discussion
Species recognition
The checklist follows a 2022 study that identified six geographically distinct lineages in the longear complex. Older sources often combine these fishes under Lepomis megalotis. Drainage context is consequently important when comparing a modern species record with an older guide; a broad historical range for megalotis should not automatically be assigned to solis.
Sources: Marine and freshwater fishes of Alabama: a revised checklist and discussion
Guide sources
Research reviewed 2026-10-19.
