Bed Fishing

[HookRz]

Get your Google-Fu on and search peer review articles on the effects of bass fishing during the spawn. Sort them  out by funding, and the effect on tourism in the area the study originated, that is, University affiliation. I think you will find the studies funded by the folks that sell us tackle and those from places where  local economies reap $$$$ from the spawn will mostly say it has little effect. 

 

I myself self see an effect on the Ohio lakes just across the Pa line. Not just in numbers but in size. When larger genetically superior fish are targeted their genes are not passed on. 

 

As as far as fish returning to the bed are concerned, some do, but it makes little difference when a hooked fish thrashes in the bed scattering the eggs all over.

 

But where legal, it's a matter of individual choice. I just hate it when the bragging rights that come with winning some club tournament, or any tournament for that matter, influence that choice. 

[TnRiver46]

 I wonder if Osprey, bald eagle, river otter, Blue heron,  and other bass ponder this moral dilemma. I think to claim that fishing with a rod and reel has a significant impact on bass population dynamics is flattering ourselves

[Fun4Me]

29 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

 I wonder if Osprey, bald eagle, river otter, Blue heron,  and other bass ponder this moral dilemma. I think to claim that fishing with a rod and reel has a significant impact on bass population dynamics is flattering ourselves

 

I wonder how many Osprey, bald Eagle, river otter, blue heron, and other bass catch fish for sport. 

[TnRiver46]

Just now, Fun4Me said:

 

I wonder how many Osprey, bald Eagle, river otter, blue heron, and other bass catch fish for sport. 

Or stop when they reach a 5 fish limit 

[the reel ess]

I fish beds in the spring and when I'm in my buddy's boat we even keep most smaller fish. I let every bass I catch over 3 lbs go and lately i don't keep much at all. If you take too many they'll get bigger on average. I think the places that would be adversely affected by fishing during the spawn have seasons set so you can't.

 

Anyway, I have no problem catching big mama off a bed. I let her go right back.

[TnRiver46]

@JustJames cracking me up with the 3 titles of this thread today Hahahaha. I'm fairly new to the site and didn't know what a crazy can of worms this was

[K_Mac]

JustJames, the mods may delete this thread, but I doubt it. Once you post on a forum the thread often takes on a life of its own. You asked a question many others have asked, and opinions are as varied as the people replying. Relax and enjoy the ride.

[everythingthatswims]

Lake Anna, my "home" lake, has multiple tournaments every weekend year-round. It has a big population of large fish, and they get moved around a lot in the spring, but the lake still produces. The pressure makes it tough to catch them though, really tough!

[Raul]

19 hours ago, JustJames said:

Today I went out for a quick hour after a very disappointed day yesterday (broken my fev rod tip on my first boat trip).

There are couple of guy bed fishing in the same area I wanna fish. He told me he saw a few but they dont bite. This is the same bed I tried a few day ago as well with no luck.

I tried with my Fat Ika within 5 mins, I got that fish out, just a small 1.5 lbs. Saw a few fish in the same area but couldnt get them to bite either. Another guy came by and said he got another which bite his worm more than 10 times but he doesnt wanna set hook. I went to that spot pitch my ika out a few times until he took it out and start to run. I play with this guy a bit before landing him, pretty good size may be 2.5lb.

 

When I fish for bed fish I fish them quick and try to release them close to  their bed.

I have read somewhere that sometime the fish doesnt go back to their bed and other fish would eat all their eggs. Now I kinda feel bad a little.

What do you think? 

 

 

I think you are in the wrong sport if you feel bad.

[slonezp]

13 hours ago, Catt said:

Random thought

 

Everyone worries about catching bedding bass but gives no thought to catching them between beds.

Bass swimming from bed to bed? Sounds like me after I got divorced only I never got caught 

[jr231]

@slonezp hopefully you didn't end up an example at 5th grade adult education. 

[A-Jay]

38 minutes ago, slonezp said:

Bass swimming from bed to bed? Sounds like me after I got divorced only I never got caught 

 

Hope you didn't end up with a bloody red tail  ..  ..  .. ..

A-Jay

[Jeff H]

I don't do it now, but have in the past during my tournament years.  I figure they have enough to deal with without me adding to their problems so I leave 'em be.  

[JustJames]

@TnRiver46 If I knew I wouldnt ask. Dont even think about "keeping bass" question.

@K_Mac I dont mind any replies to my question,(since I can answer my own question) I just dont want this thread to be another one of those debate.

@Raul too bad Im asian, I feel bad for every little thing. Lol

[The Bassman]

I'm sure a lot of us appreciate what your intent is. Really enjoy your input.

[Bluebasser86]

Showing compassion and concern isn't a sign of weakness @JustJames, it's a sign you're human. 

 

This has actually been pretty tame compared to some of the past threads on fishing for bedding fish. It's just one of those things that people feel very strongly about and can really bring out the emotion. 

[Jar11591]

21 hours ago, Raul said:

 

I think you are in the wrong sport if you feel bad.

 

Uh, no. I think you may be in the wrong sport if you aren't at least conscious of how your actions may possibly effect nature. 

 

Im not against bedfishing at all. I do it sometimes. But I am against a lack of consciousness from anglers as far as how their actions can possibly* affect an ecosystem.  

He's not at all in the wrong sport.

[the reel ess]

Any time you catch a fish there's a chance you'll kill it. If the population isn't suffering, you're not hurting it. On the other hand there are a lot of fisheries that are in need of fewer bedding bass. At least from the standpoint of average size. We have over-conserved fish in a lot of bodies of water.

[scaleface]

I cant even see the beds most of the time . If  they bed  near shallow cover than I'm fishing beds inadvertently .

["hamma"]

Once I learned about bedding bass? I've targeted the pre-spawn "highways" ever since.

 Im not touting whether bed fishing is right or wrong, just informing ya'll that I prefer to allow bass to do what they need, to replenish the population. Does my "highway" tactic effect the spawn? I dont think so as I let my fish go right away after a few seconds of admiring them. They may have lost the nutrition my lure tricked them from, but they have  food available to them to replenish.

 If you choose to bed fish?  go for it, I just choose to target the prespawn highway as a option that allows me to still catch fish during that time, without pounding beds, and still have a good chance at a really big bass. Of course if the big girls are up on the beds laying eggs, these fish are not available to me, but then yet these girls are usually "hard to get" like a lead cheerleader thats sweet on the quarterback. So I feel, its just a futile attempt to target them bedding to begin with. 

 

 But, back to the issue, it takes all kinds to make the world go round, so if you do,..or if you dont, bed fish? Doesnt fire up my skivies at all, Do what ya'll decide to do. Either way you choose isn't, and shouldn't be my concern anyways.

 I do what I do for "my" reasons. Im sure ya'll have yours, and I respect that. 

 

   I feel weather, water level changes, predation, and timing may have more effect, on bedding bass than us fishing anyways. Mother nature does have her ways, and as many of us know "It's not nice to fool with mother nature" her leaway, and co-operation is welcome during that specific time of year.

[scaleface]

A lake can only handle so many adult   bass . A very small percentage  of fry are ever going to survive  .    The sheer volume of hatchlings  ensures that there will be a next generation in a number   that  the habitat can support . Around here its changing water levels , that can most likely   have a profound impact on the number of fish that make it too adolescence . 

 

 My  opinion not fact .

[TOXIC]

23 hours ago, fissure_man said:

 

Links?

Google.  Just so you know, if you are fishing during the spawn and catching fish, chances are you got them off a bed even if you didn't see it.  So many factors play into spawning.  I based my comments on following Michigan's recent opening up their season for catch and release for the first time in years.  They performed a lot of studies and concluded that it caused no harm.  The meat fishing season is still regulated because if you want to make sure a fish doesn't spawn, that's the way to do it.  There's the next debate.  Keep a limit for the table of not? 

[J Francho]

20 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

Just so you know, if you are fishing during the spawn and catching fish, chances are you got them off a bed even if you didn't see it.

 

That goes against anything I've heard from local biologists.  If EVERY FISH is on a bed, then no wonder fishing is so tough - there aren't many fish in the lake! 

 

What I learned was that around 70% of the bass population doesn't participate in the spawn.

[TOXIC]

OK let me qualify......If you are fishing spawning areas during the spawn.  My point being that the beds you see are a small fraction of the actual beds being utilized.  Not all fish spawn at once either....smallmouth in St Clair for example spawn in waves.  We have planned our trips there for 13 years to intersect the first and second wave because you can then catch them in all phases...Pre-spawn, post-spawn and actually on the beds.  

[J Francho]

They do the same on Ontario and Erie.