Three Decent Fish Via Crankin' & Windin'

[Dead River]

The bite in middle Ga is still very slow. The water is cold enough to keep drinks. Had a couple of warm days, I fished both, tried two locations the second day and found myself back at the slow but sure. It took off fast with two nice fish in about 20 mins and then ebbed to nothing, the day prior I had one bite one fish, probably should've been throwing a jerkbait and working it slow, but I was resigned to crank and wind. We have more cold weather forthcoming so I imagine the proper pre-spawn feed has to be delayed. these fish are not as skinny as they look, they're well built just no bellies to speak of, you can tell they haven't been eating much over the winter. If we get a warming trend toward the end of the month all three of these fish will be 5 lbs, the biggest may be 6#. footballs galore. My pb from this lake is 7# and it was 21"x17" (total length/tail pinched.

  had three strikes and three nice fish. 4lb 3oz, 5 lb 2 oz, and 4 lb 14 oz.

 

[Rangerphil]

Nice!

[Rivers Edge]

Good job.

[Mainebass1984]

 If we get a warming trend toward the end of the month all three of these fish will be 5 lbs, the biggest may be 6#. footballs galore. My pb from this lake is 7# and it was 21"x17" (total length/tail pinched.

  had three strikes and three nice fish. 4lb 3oz, 5 lb 2 oz, and 4 lb 14 oz.

 

 

 

In less then a month you think all those fish will gain a pound ? That is crazy. It would take very long time up here where I am for a fish to gain a pound. Like a year or more maybe 2  especially with an older fish going from 5 to 6 lbs. Must be some crazy growth rate for that lake your fishing. Even during the spawn a female will only gain 10 % of her body weight in eggs.

[Bankbeater]

WTG! At least your water is liquid down there.

[basshole8190]

In less then a month you think all those fish will gain a pound ? That is crazy. It would take very long time up here where I am for a fish to gain a pound. Like a year or more maybe 2 especially with an older fish going from 5 to 6 lbs. Must be some crazy growth rate for that lake your fishing. Even during the spawn a female will only gain 10 % of her body weight in eggs.

I'm going to guess not many lakes in maine have shad? If not you wouldn't know that lm bass will eat 4 lbs of shad in a day or two and swell themselves inpreparation for spawn. i caught a fish last year in february on a spinnerbait that threw up over 40 shad on its way to the boat and still had a potbelly. the fish was approx. 17" and was almost 5 lbs! add in the 10% of egg weight and you could have a fish that could gain over 2lbs in a month.

[Siebert Outdoors]

3 Dandy fish there.  Congrats.

[Dead River]

Yeah these fish in this lake are generally fatter than this. I could see them gaining a lb

[buzzed bait]

nice fish man, it has been tough for me here in middle, ga as well.  i've been more on scouting trips than fishing trips with the water temps in the 30s.  glad to see some nice fish!  can't wait for the steady warm weather!

[Mainebass1984]

I'm going to guess not many lakes in maine have shad? If not you wouldn't know that lm bass will eat 4 lbs of shad in a day or two and swell themselves inpreparation for spawn. i caught a fish last year in february on a spinnerbait that threw up over 40 shad on its way to the boat and still had a potbelly. the fish was approx. 17" and was almost 5 lbs! add in the 10% of egg weight and you could have a fish that could gain over 2lbs in a month.

 

4 lbs of shad in a day ?  2 lbs in a month ? I just don't think that it is biologically possible. Any science behind these claims ?

[AK-Jax86]

Nice fish!! Mainebass you got to remember that you are fishing up north and this is the south everything is BIGGER IN THE SOUTH!

I don't think these claims are too far fetched. More abundance of food down here and the fish act differently I'm sure than they do up north... Just like the people do lol (I'm from NJ moved to FL so I can speak on that with first hand experience both fish wise and people wise lol)

[Mainebass1984]

AK ... Whether it is south or north I still do not believe a bass can eat 4 lbs of shad a day or grow two pounds in less then a month. I like facts and scientific evidence. Biologically southern bass or northern bass, it doesn't matter, have to still go through the biological process to grow, to put on weight. A bass stomach is only so large and for them to make room they must break down the food they have already ingested and pass it through there system. Even under ideal conditions for grow, optimum water temperature, and food I find it very difficult to believe.

[Dead River]

Well fed post winter and pre spawn with roe on top of a full belly that 5-3 I caught is a 6 lber all day long

[Dead River]

mainebass, you have to think out of the box, man.

 

[Dead River]

that fish is not from the same lake, but you take my meaning.

 

bass put on weight in different places, here are some healthier fish from the same lake I caught the three this past weekend. these fish were caught a couple of years ago

[Dead River]

[Dead River]

here is a 5 lb 2 oz fish from the prespawn last year. I cropped the fish's belly accidentally but yes it was extremely fat. look at the bass closely. that is not a 5 lb frame and head, it's morbidly engorged with forage and roe, it was weighed on a reliable handheld digital and fought like the dickens, below it is another fish that weighed 4 lb 6 oz, see what I mean?

[Dead River]

6 pounder from the prespawn last year

[shimmy]

no one is doubting fish fatten up for prespawn and put some weight. The claim of bass eating 4 pounds of shad a day was silly. Unless the person was referring to 18-20 pound bass that he catches frequently.

[Dead River]

biggest fish I've landed out of the lake, right at 7 lbs 21" (tail pinched total length) x 17" N.B. this fish was caught in mid October of 2013, so no eggs in site, how about that heavy algal stain, lot of fertilizer run off huh?

[Dead River]

no one is doubting fish fatten up for prespawn and put some weight. The claim of bass eating 4 pounds of shad a day was silly. Unless the person was referring to 18-20 pound bass that he catches frequently.

 

I'm not saying 4 lbs, I'm just saying they can inflate. I've posted pictures of what my girls should be looking like going forward

[Darren.]

Hey, those bare things, sticking out from the sleeves of your shirt...what are they, exactly? We don't usually see those until a few months from now. Then we'll show you all OUR fish 

 

Congrats, really. Nice catches.

[Mainebass1984]

mainebass, you have to think out of the box, man.

 

 

 

I do try and think out of the box.

 

I realize some fish can be very fat and put on weight differently.

 

A well portioned northern largemouth, post spawn.

 

 

I do like facts and scientific evidence. Fish in the 4-5 lb class putting on an entire pound in less then a month is unheard of. The food conversion rates would have to be incredible, well above anything achieved in a controlled environment under ideal conditions.

[Dead River]

 

I do try and think out of the box.

 

I realize some fish can be very fat and put on weight differently.

 

A well portioned northern largemouth, post spawn.

 

 

I do like facts and scientific evidence. Fish in the 4-5 lb class putting on an entire pound in less then a month is unheard of. The food conversion rates would have to be incredible, well above anything achieved in a controlled environment under ideal conditions.

 

if fish put on 10% of their body weight in roe prior to the spawn then for a 5 lber, 10% of 16 oz is 1.6 oz, 1.6oz x 5= 8 oz, that's half a pound of roe a  5 lber will put on, and just so you know, I don't buy that 10% figure across the board

 

are you trying to tell me that a fish is not going to consume 8 oz of forage during the prespawn, I'm gonna have to side with the other guy from Georgia here.

 

I posted these pictures to illustrate how portly these fish are during the prespawn. the three fish I caught last weekend are nowhere nearly as filled out as the fish I shared in photographs from the previous years. we had historically much milder winters both of those years and it's evident that the fish began feeding up earlier, you can look at them and tell that they are well nourished, those photos of me and the buddy were taken in late January of 2012. the proof is in the pudding, look at the bass I caught this winter in the OP, then look at the fish from years past, they are much, much heavier. the bass I caught this winter have similar lengths just not the girth and stockiness.

 

maybe it's your location, but our bass have a longer growing season here and eat more, they have a higher metabolism as well

[Dead River]

n.b. in close to a month, combination of the prespawn feed up and the roe development.