What Causes Bass Tail Fins To Deteriorate?

[Catch and Grease]

I was just scrolling through some pictures and saw a one of me holding a good healthy looking bass that was a couple pounds, but I happen to look at the tail and notice plenty of holes and tears in it.

So you think this is just old age or is it from previous injury's most likely? Like it getting bit by a predator while young? There isn't anything that would eat the bass except other bass in my pond but it was brought over from our local lake and stocked into our pond so it could have been attacked by a bowfin/jack etc when it was young but Idk...

I've seen it before but don't know if its old age or something else....

[Catch and Grease]

This is the picture, zoomed in a bit to see the fish better

Edit: I've read in some places that bass can get their tails beat up from spawn and building nest, that's why you can catch males around spawn with bloody tails... Dunno how true that is but maybe this is from spawn and just hasn't healed???

This is a thread that's like 5 years old about blood on the tail that I found, pretty good read

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/78818-blood-on-tail/

[Jar11591]

Around here I catch a lot of bass with ripped or bleeding fins, but they are usually accompanied by big scars on the body from northern pike bites.

[WRB]

Bass don't have hands to build spawning nest, they use their tails to sweep away bottom debris. Males do the majority of bed building and often have tail damage as a result. If the bass gets it's damaged tail infected the damage can be permanent.

Tom

[speed craw]

I had this one I presume from fanning the bed

[speed craw]

Sorry was weird camera angle not to mention incorrect way to hold a fish .

[F14A-B]

Sorry was weird camera angle not to mention incorrect way to hold a fish .

Shoot ain't nothing wrong... Can see tail great!

[bassguytom]

Bass seem to get some tail damage when my maid dust them too much on my wall. Nah just kidding I don't have a maid. My wife does all the dusting.

[NDH Fishing]

Bass probably do get bite marks on their tails, but most scares on basses tails are from bed making.

[PersicoTrotaVA]

Bed making mostly, If there are bigger fish in the lake then it could be battle scars.  That one looks like he was nipped by another fish or a slight case of fin rot.  If you caught it during the pre spawn or spawn time of year it is most likely damage to do building nests.

[Kevin22]

Sorry was weird camera angle not to mention incorrect way to hold a fish .

 

 

Its better than the people who bend the jaw 90 degrees to flare the gills. Aside from holding it horizontal and supporting the belly, what you did is the next best thing. 

[Master Bait'r]

Most is from fighting with other bass. Find are pretty much the only thing they can latch onto so when they scuffle the fins suffer first. Seen it a thousand times in aquariums & other species.