Tough Days On The Rock

[Don House]

Well, went out today and really struggled the fishing has been hard to say the least since Saturday for me, few fish is your best bet per day! Today we pulled off 2 little smallies and 2 rock bass in 4 hours from KC to DAM. All of our fish and from what I hear from the other guides there fish also are coming on swimming grubs. Slow rolled from shallow back to the boat. But reports are on smaller fish (Non keepers) seem to be the thing right now from just about all of the guides also. Not sure if these fish are moving way back into the flooded timber and brush were we can't get to them (keep that in mind, might come in handy) or if the cold fronts keep pushing them back.. Going over to Taney for a few days then back on the rock, will let you know if anything changes and hopefully they will turn on again.

Good Fishing Everyone

Capt. Don

[CMAC]

Don,

I am hearing 63 degree water everywhere, they should be on the beds!!! And hard to get too!!!

[denjac]

Might be a blessing in disguise. Will keep the bed jerkers from doing there thing. Makes me want to throw bunch of constina wire in the water on the cleared off pea gravel banks that everyone is pounding. And the little babies will have plenty of cover to hide in. Might be the biggest spawn the rock has ever had! I inserted some info on the spawn for black and smallies.

Smallies: Spawning occurs in the spring when water temperatures approach 60°F. Males move into spawning areas with the nests usually located near shore in lakes; downstream from boulders or some other obstruction that offers protection against strong current in streams. Mature females may contain 2,000 to 15,000 golden yellow eggs. Males may spawn with several females on a single nest. On average each nest contains about 2,500 eggs, but nests may contain as many as 10,000 eggs. Eggs hatch in about 10 days if water temperatures are in the mid-50s, but can hatch in 2 to 3 days if temperatures are in the mid-70s. Males guard the nest from the time eggs are laid until fry begin to disperse, a period of up to a month. Fry begin feeding on zooplankton, switching to insect larvae and finally fish and crayfish as they grow.

Black:Largemouth bass spawn as early as March or as late as June. The males build saucer shaped nests 20 to 30 inches in diameter and guard the nest and eggs from all intruders. Largemouth bass grow 4 to 6 inches during their first year, 8 to 12 inches in two years, and up to 16 inches in three years. Largemouth bass may live for 13 years.

[skeeter]

Might be a blessing in disguise. Will keep the bed jerkers from doing there thing. Makes me want to throw bunch of constina wire in the water on the cleared off pea gravel banks that everyone is pounding.

And a BIG AMEN to that, Brother.

[motoman]

I hear yah!

-

Thankfully, I've never had to resort to bed fishing. Always honed my skills elsewhere.

[Whack'emGood]

Right on, guys. I never purposefully target spawners. If you want your lake to have a healthy population of bass, it just doesn't make sense. Is it really worth it to catch big spawners for a few weeks and, in the process, put a hurting on the repopulation of the lake? I say no way. If you love something, it doesn't make sense to hamper its future existence. These guys need to, instead of being selfish, think about that awhile. Staging fish are easier to catch anyway... there are always some stagers to catch... they don't all spawn at exactly the same time. Do the rest of us, and yourself, a favor and leave those spawners be.

[Bill Babler]

Denjac, Loved your post.

Have spoken to the Head of Warm Water's Fisheries here in Mo. and was wondering if your post were generalizations on the LM?

Most of the post is spot on, but Northern LM and those in Mo. do not have nearly the growth rates you posted, according to the Biologist.

Those rates are for Southen Zones, and he said unless the Strain is an F1 or F2 Florida, 16 inches in the third year would be more than Max.

While the Florida's can get to 3 lbs. on occausion, in that time frame, they have not seen that kind of growth in Table Rock Lake's Northern Strain of LM. Most commonly 4 to 5 years to hit that magic 15 inches. Add a year for the SM and 2 more for the K's.

Thanks for providing the great info.

[denjac]

Bill, I believe the article was a genralization or the extreme to make it more facinating. Thanks for the correction. I bet there is a growth differance between northern missouri and southern missouri.

[Sam]

I'm not much of a bass fisherman, I'd rather go after crappie, walleyes, or white bass. But I like to fish for bass post-spawn and usually devote a few trips to that in late May.

I do pretty good on big ones at that time, when they still have worn-down tails and fins from sweeping the nest. I'm not taking them off the nests, because I find them suspended in flooded timber along bluffs in 25' or so water. I C/R big bass anyway, but if one gets hooked deep at that time and has to go in the live well I don't feel too bad about it AFTER they're done breeding.

[Jason Essary]

And a BIG AMEN to that, Brother.

My thoughts exactly. Never liked the nest fisherman. especally the tourneys at that time. how could it not hurt the fish.

Ive got a theory that probably isnt 100% true but tell me what u guys think. LMouths spawn shallower than smallies and kentucs ive heard. with a lot of bed pressure over many years, could the lmouths get thinned down more than the others because of them spawning shallower and are easier to catch. Could that be a reason for the considerable fewer lmouths in the lower half of the lake with the clear water, and the taking over of the smallies and kentucs?????