Spawners... Off Limits

[Phil Lilley]

Just thinking about some of the conversations on fishing for bass while on beds.

Why not form a club. To be a "member" just display a sticker on your boat/truck that shows you support NOT fishing for bass on beds.

I could have Jason design something catchy... any ideas? Should be small, simple and cool.

I'll have them printed and send them to anyone who wants one.

I guess we could do the same for trout, cause there's just as much passion about fishing for spawning trout.

We could even design a simple website drawing attention to the negatives to catching females active on beds... actually shame some of the tournament guys into admitting what they are doing goes against the ethics they pretend to uphold (Is that alittle strong??).

Gotta get it done quick cause I'm leaving in 3 weeks. I can have someone take over for me mailing them out... just need to get it designed and printed before I'm gone.

[WebFreeman]

I think it's a good idea. You could make some play on pro-life. Maybe that's a bad idea.

[Wayne SW/MO]

It might irritate some BASS members, many of their early tournaments are scheduled to take advantage of the spawn.

Its always nice to hear that so and so is the favorite because of his prowess in bed fishing.

[bobber]

saw them in good numbers on sunday. creek banks lined with beds and sorry to say a couple of guys just banging away at them... i did my part as to bang ,bump, and splash, much as i could as they fished away! i even tried to explain why they should not fish them , but they said they only came this time of year! to catch fish ! makes you sad to see that going on..... but it is!!!

[fishinwrench]

The article in the May issue of Missouri Game&Fish oughta raise some hackles !

Apparently, writer Billie Cooper promotes bed fishin' for Smallmouth in the Meramec, Huzzah, Eleven point.... and giving pointers to help the newly initiated.

Isn't Cory Cottrell a member here ?

[Flysmallie]

Here is a link to the article.

Missouri Game & Fish

[RiverRunner]

I'm probably gonna regret giving my thoughts on this one, but here goes. I've been bass fishing a long time, and I've fished a lot of tournaments as well. I don't intentionally fish for bedding fish in the spring, I prefer to fish deeper water most of the time. Sight fishing is just not for me, I've always thought that post or pre-spawn fish are easier to catch and pattern. However, most biologist seem to be of the mind that bed fishing (on lakes for largemouth, not rivers for smallmouth) does not adversly affect the population because only a small percentage of beds are visible to fishermen. Most bass, esp those in highly pressured fisheries (Lake Fork, TX for example) spawn in deeper water where beds are less likely to be seen. We could debate the ethics of bed fishing all day and all night, but the truth is if you are bass fishing from March to June, there is a good possibility that any bass you catch could be off of a bed or guarding fry.

Another factor to consider is that bass in southern lakes and impoundments (which I would consider any lake in AR & MO) and do not all spawn at the same time. There will be fish on the beds from March all the way into early June. In northern lakes, the situation is different because of the shorter growing season. In those lakes, all the bass in a given lake will spawn at pretty much the same time. That is why there is a closed season on bass in northern states. Bed fishing could pose a threat to those fisheries.

I'm no expert on the spawning habits of stream smallmouth, so I'll keep my mouth shut on that one, I usually don't start fishing for them until mid-May (when I can wet-wade). But, in our area, the evidence suggests that bed fishing for largemouths in the lakes does not harm the population. You may not like the idea of someone fishing for bass that are in the act of spawing (and I'm not sure that I do) but it is legal and according to the biologists, not harming the fishery. I just get leary of these debates on bed fishing because if taken to its extreme, we would have a closed season on bass (no fishing whatsoever) to protect them during the spawn. But like I said above, if you are bass fishing from March to June, you are fishing for fish on beds you can't see, regardless of how you feel about bed fishing.

[ollie]

RiverRunner, sounds like your comparing apples to oranges. A small stream can be affected many years after some people clean out the spawning smallies. I understand your not taking sides and your giving the biologists point of view, but do you really think it's not hurting our smaller streams? I see the article is for C&R on bedding smallies, so that makes it ok? Sorry, I'm in the class that says no to bed fishing no matter if it is C&R or not.

[Al Agnew]

Bedding smallies aren't always easy to catch unless you specifically sight fish to the beds with lures that you can sink right into the bed. However, I have a real problem with the article, and I kinda think MDC biologists might, also. The ONLY reason for a catch and release only, otherwise closed season on stream bass in MO is to give some protection to spawning fish. To specifically give pointers on how to catch those fish, as the article did, seems to me to be directly going against the spirit of the regulation. There is no doubt that catching male bass off the spawning bed WILL result in some mortality of the eggs or fry, even if the bass is immediately released. All you have to do is watch a river smallmouth on a bed for a little bit. The bed is almost always surrounded by sunfish and other bed predators, which dart in at any opportunity and snatch a few eggs or fry. Even if the bass gets back to the bed quickly, it will take a while to recover fully and be able to protect the eggs or fry effectively.

As RiverRunner pointed out, the success or failure of an individual bed is not the same as the overall population or year class. The smaller the water (and hence the fewer the fish), the more impact the loss of eggs or fry in a single bed will have. I'm not sure whether or not sight fishing to beds has a significant impact on big reservoirs, but I'd think the chances are much greater that a lot of bed fishing would have an negative affect on a year class on a small stream.

I also have a problem (personally) with naming individual stream stretches in an article in a major publication. I've been interviewed a number of times for articles on river smallmouth fishing, and I always refuse to name specific stream stretches, and if the outdoor writer goes fishing with me, I take him on the condition that he NOT name the stretch of stream we fish. It's easy enough, if you are willing to work at it just a little bit, to find your own access points, and for the most part one particular stretch of stream isn't going to be much better than the next one upstream or down, anyway. Why point everybody to one stretch? Of course, there ARE a few stretches of certain streams that I find to be exceptionally good fishing, and it would really tick me off if somebody pointed to THEM in an article!

[hank franklin]

That article is just irresponsible. Can't believe a conscientious smallmouth angler would write it, much less a responsible editor print it.

Cheap.