Lure Color Patterns - SHAD

[RHuff]

I've always tried to match the particular color lure to the conditions for the day, such as a black or dark profile on a cloudy day or at night vs a more natural color or lighter color on sunny days. More so, dark in muddy water and light in clearer water. I've had moderate success doing so in the past few years. 

I fish in southern West Virginia in mountain lakes. All are man made and most have good numbers of bass, bluegills, perch, crappie, catfish, trout. When trying to imitate a baitfish, mostly all you hear on TV or in magazines is SHAD. Bass love Shad. Most of your choices in baits nowadays is different variations of shad colors. This leads to me to the question. Do shad even exist in my waters? I read where they die at 42-45 degrees. Most of our waters get colder than that in the winter on a yearly basis. If there aren't shad numbers, if any,  in my waters would a bass know what a shad even is? Is it instinct that the Bass already knows? I know for a fact the three biggest natural baits where I live is baby bluegill, baby bass, and crawfish. Should I stick to these three colors as my primary choice because it's natural for my area or should I go with some variations of shad to go for maybe a reaction strike? 

[bonzai22]

If shad aren't visible either with your eyes or on the graph I would try to imitate the other forage. Depending on the time of year certain forage will be what is more abundant to them. I would just match your baits to the different things you mentioned. Also in the spring when the crappie are spawning and up shallow a black and white swim jig is an overlooked pattern.

[Paul Roberts]

Contact your fisheries folks on what waters have shad.

Bass do not instinctively know "shad", except to say they'll eat what's abundant and available. If it's shad, the bass will be on them.

You hear so much about shad bc in so many reservoirs (esp in the south) shad is the primary forage. But probably more waters -natural lakes, ponds, and small reservoirs- have bluegill as the primary forage. Even in the shad fisheries, bluegill often rank high. 

"Shad" colored lures work almost anywhere though bc they tend to make a good general baitfish imitation. 

Imitating shad, compared to other prey species, has more to do with location than anything else -shad being mostly pelagic. Bluegills can be somewhat pelagic too in places but they do not school in the density and tightness that shad do.

 

[scaleface]

There doesnt have to be shad there for a shad colored lure to be effective .   A shad will be close enough to a creek chub or some other forage .  

[alzun664]

I would look up your local lakes online and see what types of baitfish if any are in your area. I did the same with all the waters I fish a while back and learned a lot.

As for shad color, I think you would have better luck with colors that imitate your local forage, but shad is a very effective color even in lakes where there aren't any shad. Bass don't really have to 'know' what a shad is to try to eat it. Sometimes you need to throw something entirely different from what everyone else is throwing.

[ww2farmer]

On my home lake there is no shad, yet shad colored lures work just fine..................go figure.

[smalljaw67]

Shad patterns work where there are no shad and it is because a lot of different forage species have similar colors. When small forage species die from cold water it is called thermal shock, and a lot of these fish that go through it exhibit the same hues of green and purple in varying degrees. The reason is most of these forage fish have scales and there is a pigment that comes out when the fish begins to die and it is why colors like smoke purple is popular in the north. Alewives do this as well as shad and so do fathead minnows and chubs so you can use shad patterns where there are no shad and alewife patterns where there are no alewives. We don't have blueback herring in any other waters I fish but because they are similar to alewives their color patterns work.

[Bruce424]

Bass will react to alot of patterns and colors I believe. The flash of white then chomp. But I still have better success with browns olives or gold colored crankbaits. But it is annoying Somtimes to keep hearing " use whites for shad". "Shad this shad that" haha