Whats The Water Temp When The Bass Start To Spawn?

[Paul Roberts]

So.... 0.0000001% of swans (or pick your critter) are "black" (or pick your rare trait). That could well be true. Are you saying that Karl Popper was suggesting otherwise?

 

Maybe you could give some well documented examples of other circumstances beyond the springs and tropical introductions (Puerto Rico) that refute the importance of heat in bass spawning. Then we could adjust that value to ... maybe 0.000002%.

 

Roger, shall we bump to 0.00003%

 

Anecdotal evidence from today... Launch ramp area water temperature was mid 50s. I didn't get to practice so I didn't know where and at what stage the bass were in. So we're thinking ok, traps in the grass. Prespawn mode right?

We go to an area that usually has grass. First fish was 5+ then nothing for an hour. So time to move. We go to a cove that warms pretty quickly and temp was a few degrees warmer. About 57-58. About noon, clouds clear out and when the sun is up enough to see beds, guess what? Beds all over. Bass in full spawning mode and the temperature was still under 60 degrees.

But, do you have temperature profiles for the previous 2 weeks? TPW gives a value of 15C. Possibly they are less equipped to monitor such things?

 

I'm not trying to be difficult here. Just haven't found any solid data that refute the role of temperature in the initiation of bass spawning.

[Catt]

Really Paul, ya sounding like someone else we know!

Empirical: based on, concerned with, or verifiable by observation or experience rather than theory or pure logic.

Scientific Method: MUST meet all 4 principles

Observation, Testable, Repeatable, & Falsifiable

Your hypothesis/theory was proven false by your 0.000001%!

[RoLo]

Maybe you could give some well documented examples of other circumstances beyond the springs and tropical introductions (Puerto Rico) that refute the importance of heat in bass spawning. Then we could adjust that value to ... maybe 0.000002%.

 

PUERTO RICO?? (now that's funny right there)

 

Spring-fed waters with a static year-round temperature have nothing to do with the "tropics"

Ground water that springs from isothermic aquifers & sinkholes is independent of the earth's atmosphere.

FYI: Isothermic waters are found in Georgia, Florida, Texas, Arizona and several other states.

Anyway if you want to include Puerto Rico & Cuba in the mix, then your 0.000001% only becomes more preposterous.

 

Regardless, let's pretend that it's only 0.000001% of waters that totally eliminate the significance of water temperature.

Can you give me an example of 0.000001% waters that totally eliminate the significance of photoperiod?

(of course not)

 

Roger

[Paul Roberts]

This is getting a little weird guys. A little too personal maybe.

 

Catt, you've lost me. And...dunno who that someone else is, and I'm not sure I care to hear a put-down. I'm staying on topic.

 

Let me restate the statistic so it's better understood:

 

How many BR members do you think fish bass waters in which temperature plays an important role in the initiation of spawning? 50%, 90%, 99%, 99.999%? The reciprocal of that represents the waters in which temperature does not play a role.

 

Puerto Rico? (that's funny right there)

Spring-fed waters with static year-round temperatures have little to do with "tropical" (they spring from aquifers & karsts)

FYI: Isothermic waters are also found in Florida, Texas, Arizona and other states.

Anyway, if you want to include Puerto Rico & Cuba in the mix, then 0.000001% only becomes more preposterous.

 

Regardless, let's pretend that only 0.000001% of waters totally eliminate the importance of water temperature.

Can you give me an example of 0.000001% waters that totally eliminate the importance of photoperiod?

 

Roger

Tropical waters are similar to springs in that they are nearly isothermic. Isothermic waters are pretty darn rare across the basses' range. You place the hypothetical decimal place where ever you want it. You must admit they make up a tiny percentage of bass waters.

 

Can I give you an example of waters that totally eliminates photoperiod? No. 100% of bass waters are affected by photoperiod is my answer -again. This question tells me you haven't actually read this thread. Not sure what Catt and his new clutch friend Karl would say about the reciprocal of that one.

 

Hey, guys, go review the scientific literature on bass spawning. And if you want to go further, get a thermometer and start taking daily profiles and observing when bass actually initiate spawning. Occasionally running around with a surface temperature gauge isn't going to get the job done.

 

I'm outta the sandbox.

[Catt]

Paul, what do you do with the 0.000001% of the research that does not agree with the other 99.99999%?

[WRB]

Using aquaifer spring water feed waterways to support your theory where water temperature do not vary are isolated to a few locations. Most bass lakes are not primarily spring feed or have constant water temperatures. Okeechobee for example, the largest Florida lake, varies from 59f to 86f annually. Florids strain LMB have evolved in waterways where water temperature rarely drop below 50 degrees and this limits there distribution to waterways that don't drop below a core water temperature of 45f, they can't survive.

If water temps are a constant ideal spawning temperature, photoperiod becomes a primary factor, agreed.

Where water temperature drops below 50 degrees in the winter and warms to ideal spawning temperatures photoperiod becomes secondary, if the longer sunlight period doesn't warm all the regional water equally. Lets agree to disagree until someone can prove otherwise.

Tom

PS, update on the lakes I mentioned earlier;

Casitas, 1st wave is complete with fry schools.

Castaic, 1st wave moving up and will spawn any day now.

Big Bear, the lake is now ice free, spawn should begin in May.

[J Francho]

I've seen enough madness surrounding whne the spawn starts, and what gets it started, moon, temp, length of daylight, wearing red jeans.....

I'll say this...tempaterature has an effect on the viability of the eggs laid, and can even have an effect on the gender of the hatching fry. That's true for just about ANY egg laying fish. Lower temps = longer incubation time, which means more time with a male guarding the nest, and vice versa. I can't remember the relationship with temp to gender, but there were several farms using to influence the gender of the "crops."

So, if temperature can affect the outcome of the spawn, then I hypothesize that there is a optimal temp. I have no way to test this, but research (different from expieriments guys!) shows it's somewhere in the low 60s.

Up here, when water temp is on the rise, approaching 60° F, I start checking my ponds. They always spawn first. Then it's shallower, warmer Lakes, finally, the bigger deep lakes. I've seen smallies on beds in Lake Ontario a full month after I've caught smallies on beds in the bays. And then I've seen largemouth on beds in late July on Chautaqua Lake. Crazy stuff. I do think temperature has a big effect, but I also think that there's a ot of other factors. Moon phase, wind, suitable, calm locations, etc. Basically all the ideal conditions have to come into alignment. There's probably a window of time around this alignment that would be the "spawn."

Anyway, that's how I think of it. Anyone that says you can predict using one parameter is lying or deluded.

[LuckyGia]

I have read and researched this for months.

Supposedly around 50° is the magic #.

Problem I had was it never got below 69° here in Florida. .

So I threw all that info out the window and found my own info.

Here the females are just now starting to bed and temps are 79° -84°

So go figure

You know what, I don't know

[rdj3385]

As a newb to BR I have to say...that was a riot. Thank you all. FWIW (which is literally nothing) I'm gonna go ahead and conclude that temp is in fact the primary factor in 99.8257% of waters. That should settle the debate. *drops keyboard, walks away*

[J Francho]

I have read and researched this for months.

Supposedly around 50° is the magic #.

Problem I had was it never got below 69° here in Florida. .

So I threw all that info out the window and found my own info.

Here the females are just now starting to bed and temps are 79° -84°

So go figure

You know what, I don't know

50° is the oft quoted temperature for prespawn activities. Water temps up here are typically 60-65 when the soawn starts.

[Mista bass]

I believe the photo period plays a huge role in spawning.i say this because I breed fresh and saltwater fish, mostly salt. When I want to get fish to spawn I play with the light period. The temperature matters but not as much much as the light. Granted this is in a controlled environment so take it for what it's worth.

[WRB]

I would think most of the east coast is going to have a late spawn this cold spring, should be on now.

Big Bear lake in SoCal is still very cold with night temps averaging 20 degrees, day time 50 degrees, the water is cold, the spawn will be in late May to June..and located 100 miles further south at 7,000' altitude. Lake Casitas the spawn started in March, located a few miles from the beach is now about 3/4 over, third wave on beds, red ears starting to make beds.. Lake Castaic the spawn just started last week.

All 3 lakes are in the same photoperiod with very different water temps.

500 miles further north at the Delta the spawn is on and Clear Lake the spawn started, different photoperiods, mild weather this spring in NorCal, very little cold water rain runoff.

Lot of factors to consider with the spawn. Mother Nature doesn't put all her eggs in one basket.

Bass spawning water temps between 60-70 degrees is based on the empirical rule and observation of bass spawning.

Tom

[LuckyGia]

I agree, I also believe how the previous winter behaved is a big factor in the spawn. I was catching female bass full of eggs about 3 weeks after ice out last year. Lakes were ice until April in Upstate NY.

[LuckyGia]

I agree, I also believe how the previous winter behaved is a big factor in the spawn. I was catching female bass full of eggs about 3 weeks after ice out last year. Lakes were ice until April in Upstate NY.

this bass in my Avatar is the female I am talking about.

[LuckyGia]

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