Bass Fishing
In spring, when the water warms up, the large-mouth bass starts to come out of the deeper water into the shallows to feed and spawn. The best time to fish for bass is in the early morning and late afternoon as bass will return to deeper pools of water during the heat of the day. The large bass usually feeds well in the evening.
Feeding Habits
They can see a plug in the dark and will take it. Both species are normally surface feeders. Therefore a surface lure or one which is retrieved just below the surface of the water will usually be more effective than a deep-diving lure. Bass eat insects, baby fish, fledglings, eggs and mice that have fallen into the water, worms, and even small snakes. Thus a lure resembling any of these may be used. Bass are very temperamental, however, and various lures will have to be tries in accordance with the water conditions.
A much debated question is whether bass strike a lure because of hunger or because they are fighters by instinct and strike to eliminate an enemy or intruder in their waters.
It is clear that during the spawning season bass will fight to protect their large family and will strike a lure as a matter of defence.
Breeding Habits
The breeding habits of both species are similar. Bass normally spawn in spring, once the water temperature exceeds 65'F. The male seeks a suitable spawning bed in the shallows and the nest is made in a sheltered spot with gravelly hard bottom, or among fibrous roots. One or more females lay their eggs in the nest which is guarded by male against invaders. The eggs are kept clean by gentile fanning movements of the male fish's tail fin. The male does not feed whilst guarding he eggs. The eggs hatch in 5 to 10 days. The warmer the water, the quicker the eggs will hatch. Bass spawn when they are two years old and the ovaries taken from a 1kg large-mouth bass showed a count of some 79 000 eggs.
Type of Rod
A light flexible fast-taper rod, 1,8 to 2,5 m in length, is most suitable to cast the very light lure and play the bass. A rod designed to cast bait with a recessed handle and fitted with a closed-face fixed-spool reel, is perhaps the most effective outfit.
Suitable Spots
Small-mouth bass are often found at the head of pool or alongside a boulder which breaks the surface of the water, usually forming an eddy. Food accumulates here on its way downstream. It likes deep water and will also be found near hard, sandy or rocky bottoms, in gullies, holes, or shadowy side of tree trunk or rock or among tree roots or at the base of rapids.
As you get to know the waters you fish, and the habits and haunts of the bass, you will achieve much better and more consistent results.
Large-mouth bass like cover and will hide near anything that will shelter them. The more difficult it is to fish in a particular spot, the greater the likelihood of finding bass there. The big bass are not easily found; they must be looked for in the most awkward spots and tempted with the right lure. A patch of weed or water-lilies or a submerged log are favorite bass haunts. Always watch these areas for any movement that will betray a big bass leaving its hiding place.
An inlet to a dam is always a good spot, as a bass will invariably lie in wait there for food to be washed down. Bass prefer clear water and a spot where the vegetation provides shelter or a spot which has a rocky bottom. A favorite bass haunt is underneath a dead branch hanging over fairly deep water, on which kingfishers perch and knock their prey. If a plug resembling a minnow is dropped near a bass lying in wait for the bird to drop a fish, it will readily grab it, often the movement the plug hits the water, as the bass will have seen it in the air and made for the spot where it will fall.
Bait
None of the natural foods which the bass eats may be used as bait. Artificial lures resembling insects, tiddlers and other natural foods may be used.
Hundreds of different lures are available but most of them are of little value. As you need a selection of lures for different waters and situation, you must build up a suitable collection of reliable lures in the right size and color, rather than a box full of untested lures. Anglers are a friendly body of sportsmen, always prepared to assist one another, and you will usually find an expert or two at a particular spot who will advise you on the correct type, colour, size and weight of lure to use. The size of the lure is usually determined by the area of the particular stretch of water - the larger the area the larger the lure.
Plugs
Plugs are by far the most popular type of lure used to catch bass. There are many hundreds of different types of lures on the market. Your choice of plugs should be governed by the following factors:
1. Colour of the water and vegetation
2. Depth of the water
3. Time of the day
4. The season
5. Weather conditions
6. Water temperature
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