Each Step Of Spawning

[Loop_Dad]

During the spawn, how many days does each steps below take?

 

1. From the beginning of spawn (when they stop eating, I guess) to making bed and deposit the eggs.

2. From the deposit of the eggs to hatching

3. From the deposit of the eggs to female bass leaving

4. From hatching to male bass leaving

 

I saw a bunch of nests today in probably 2ft of water and the water level is coming down. Hope water stays up until they hatch.

[KY Outdoorsman]

Good question, unfortunately I do not know the answer. However I will tell you this.

I was at Norris Lake, TN last weekend and I got very bored. It had rained all morning and it started warming up so I talked my father in law into both of us going and doing some fishing around the dock. When we made it, I was pitching a jig under the dock. Never had any luck. I decided to walk to the other side of the bank and toss a fluke. GOOD IDEA!!!

When I got there, I seen loads of bass in the shallows. More importantly, I watched a couple of bass spawn and I caught 2 bass off the bank. I never was able to do that. Luckily the nests were made it a good depth of water and they do not run the danger of being destroyed by the water dropping. It was awesome!! Sorry I can't answer your question once again.

[Koofy Smacker]

I dont have exacts for you, however from my experience I have seen the following.

 

Normally from the time I see beds being formed till I see no more bass on beds is 2-3 weeks. That time frame varies due to the weather but its a general rule of thumb. Water temperature also plays havoc with the length and timing of each cycle. Right now, Ive seen beds for about a week and a half in the local lake. Bass are just starting to sit on them full time and some of the big girls are moving up and they are "courting" each other. This is generally the lull where they are really hard to catch but they are not in unison with each other so move around and cover the banks. Courting only lasts a few days, which then results in some very hungry protective bass which are extremely easy to pick off given the right lure. They will hang out for 1-2 weeks depending on water temp and weather obviously till the point that they leave.

 

No idea how this really coincides with the actual biology that's just what I have witnessed year after year.

[WRB]

During the spawn, how many days does each steps below take?

 

1. From the beginning of spawn (when they stop eating, I guess) to making bed and deposit the eggs.

2. From the deposit of the eggs to hatching

3. From the deposit of the eggs to female bass leaving

4. From hatching to male bass leaving

 

I saw a bunch of nests today in probably 2ft of water and the water level is coming down. Hope water stays up until they hatch.

1. Male bass start to move into shallow water spawning zones before the female bass to search out bed sites.

This generally occurs when the cold water warms to about 60-62 degrees. The female will move up and cruise about 2 days later, if the weather is stable, no cold fronts and wind to cool the water. Males stay with the bed sites unless the conditions degrade.

2. Female bas visit bed site areas and the male bass tries to attract the female to his site. If the female is interested she may work the bed site to her liking and hang around before laying eggs. Sometimes more than 1female is interested in the bed site and lay eggs into the one bed. After laying eggs and the male fertilizes the eggs, the female moves away, the male stays to gard the eggs/ nest.

3. Egg hatch time is about 10 days at 62-64 degrees, 5 days at 67 degrees at the depth the eggs are laid. The warmer the water the faster the eggs hatch. The males stays with the fry about 2 days, then attacks and eats a few before leaving. The fry are on their own from then on.

Not all bass spawn and some females spawn more then once every few days until all the eggs are gone.

If the water drops, that spawn is lost. If severe weather drops the water temps, most of the spawn is lost.

This is called low recruitment year classes.

Post spawn lasts about 1week for a bass to recover after spawning, some don't recover.

Tom

[Nitrofreak]

I don't fish during the spawn but that is some interesting info there WRB, thanx !!!

[Kendog]

There are many ways to catch a spawining bass.

to start, throw a bedding bait to aggrivate the bass.

I suggest sight fishing and throwing a jig right into their bed, or maybe rip a jerkbait over the bed, or drop a texas rigged plastic onto it, the bass will commonly eat it to get it off its bed. soon as it eats it, GAME ON!!!!!

[Scott F]

The males stays with the fry about 2 days, then attacks and eats a few before leaving. 

 

That's interesting. There are those the think bass are genetically programmed NOT to eat their young. That's why I don't use minnow imitating baits for quite a while after the spawn.

[WRB]

Baby bass are part of the food chain from the fry stage to about 6" length for adult size bass and one reason low percent servive out of the billions of eggs laid and millions of fry hatched each year in most lakes. Baby bass lure colors are a good pre spawn choice.

Although eggs hatch at a much faster rate in warmer water above 67 degrees, the bluegill and sunfish are also in thie shallow water spawning areas in high number and can overwhelm the male bass trying to protect the nest 24 hours none stop. The survival rate of late spawner's is low compared to the early spawner's, one reason the biggest bass in the lake tend to spawn early or deeper than the average size bass.

Tom

[Paul Roberts]

That's interesting. There are those the think bass are genetically programmed NOT to eat their young. That's why I don't use minnow imitating baits for quite a while after the spawn.

That's a myth, and a fishing habit, you can properly dispose of, for many reasons.

[Scott F]

That's a myth, and a fishing habit, you can properly dispose of, for many reasons.

 

Thank you for pointing that out. Upon further research, I found a book,"Reproductive Biology and Early Life History of Fishes in the Ohio River "By Robert Wallus, Thomas P. Simon that points out that "largemouth do not eat while on the nest and that includes pre-spawn, spawn and post spawn periods."  The male will remain guarding the fry until the fry are 12-32 mm long which can take up to 2 weeks. "The presence of the male guarding the nest is essential for a successful nesting event." In studies done on lakes in Arizona, Nevada, and Wisconsin, successful nests were guarded for up to 15 days, unsuccessful nests were guarded for only 3 days. When anglers removed males from 34 nests, all nests failed.

[Loop_Dad]

Thank you all for your contributions. I don't get to fish a lot unfortunately. so this information will help me identify what stage a lake is in when I get to a lake that I haven't been for awhile.

 

1. From the beginning of spawn (when they stop eating, I guess) to making bed and deposit the eggs. Female comes up about 2 days later, and plus look around the nest for few days, so maybe 1 week
2. From the deposit of the eggs to hatching 5-10 days.Here in Northern CA probably more like 5
3. From the deposit of the eggs to female bass leaving Right away(?)
4. From hatching to male bass leaving This one veries between Tom's info (2 days) and Scott's info (upto 2 weeks).
And entire spawning takes 2-3 weeks.

 

Based on these info, the lake I visited the last weekend was in late stage of spawning cycle, because I saw some empty nests (some are done), nests with one bass (male guarding) and nests with two bass (they are still mating). If I go back in 10 days, the chances are that they are all done with it and in post-spawn mode.

 

Thank you for pointing that out. Upon further research, I found a book,"Reproductive Biology and Early Life History of Fishes in the Ohio River "By Robert Wallus, Thomas P. Simon that points out that "largemouth do not eat while on the nest and that includes pre-spawn, spawn and post spawn periods."  The male will remain guarding the fry until the fry are 12-32 mm long which can take up to 2 weeks. "The presence of the male guarding the nest is essential for a successful nesting event." In studies done on lakes in Arizona, Nevada, and Wisconsin, successful nests were guarded for up to 15 days, unsuccessful nests were guarded for only 3 days. When anglers removed males from 34 nests, all nests failed.

 

Scott, any idea why some nests were guarded for 15 days and some are only for 3 days?

[Scott F]

The section of the book I found online did not show the study done on the Nevada, Arizona and Wisconsin lakes, it referenced and quoted sections of it. There was no reason given that I saw, why some nests were guarded only 3 days aside from anglers removing males.