Bass Get Ready for the Big Event Spawning in the south
By Frank Sargeant, Editor
from The Fishing Wire
Though spawning season is still many weeks away for largemouth bass in most of the South with the exception of Florida, the internal time clocks of these fish are already counting down for the big event. Each year prior to the spawn, the fish feed heavily, packing on weight that they’ll need during the energy-sapping process of mating and then guarding the nests for weeks afterward.
Captain Mike Carter shows a 12 pounder caught in the pre-spawn period from Alabama’s Lake Guntersville on a swimjig fished around primrose bushes. (Photo Credit Mike Carter)
Prespawn bass
This pre-spawn feeding period has become the favorite time of the year for anglers who specialize in chasing big bass because the fish are hungry, and also less wary than they’re likely to be later on when more boats get back out on the water after the cold goes away.
Many of the 8 to 10 pound fish that are caught across the Southern U.S. each year are weighed in between mid-January and mid-March. To be sure, it’s not easy fishing, usually requiring lots of casting to produce any hits at all, but when a bite comes, it can be the lunker of a lifetime.
The fish tend to gather in areas that are not too far from prime spawning spots, but in much deeper water. In many lakes, scattered weeds in 8 to 12 feet of water on secondary points in the larger bays are some of the prime areas, perhaps because these are some of the areas where shad first come up on the structure.
On sunny afternoons the fish also make brief forays into the spawning areas, typically the backs of bays and shallow flats with depths of 1 to 5 feet with scattered weeds, as well as around boathouses in areas with firm shell bottom. Areas with dark mud bottoms can also attract these early fish–look for lily pads and primrose, which typically grow in this mud, as an indicator. The mud apparently acts as a heat sink, increasing water temperatures in these areas during sunny hours.
Prespwan Florida Bass
Because the big female spawners tend to be few and far between, it makes sense to use a fast-moving lure to locate them on the deeper points–a Rat-L-Trap or other vibrating, lipless lure is the favorite of many anglers, but lipped crankbaits and heavily weighted swimbaits can also be effective. The lures are cranked through the scattered weeds, then “ripped” or pulled rapidly with an upward snatch of the rod, which both knocks weeds off the hook and creates a strike trigger for any bass that may be following the lure–strikes often come just after one of these pulls.
When the fish move into the lily pads and primrose, a more weedless lure is in order–many anglers do well with swimjigs like those from Strike King, dressed with a flapping crawfish or beaver type soft plastic. These jigs are cast into the cover, then cranked slowly but steadily back, twitching occasionally to free them from weeds.
Swimjigs are generally best reserved for sunny afternoons, and for later in the season–as the actual spawn approaches, typically on the strong moon period in the last half of March and on through April–they become steadily more effective.
The fish anglers catch late January through February are not numerous, but they’re typically big ones, calling for stout tackle–a baitcaster with 17- pound test fluorocarbon line is the best bet.
These trophy class fish are the future of Southern lakes, and it makes sense to release them promptly after a few photos. They generally survive tournament weigh-ins well at this time of year, however, so release after a trip to the stage also makes sense.