What exactly is happening when right before/as a smallmouth strikes there is a flutter/splash on the surface?

[Ohioguy25]

This is quite possibly my favorite phenomenon of smallmouth fishing. It happened a bit more when I was exclusively using live minnows, but if I got a strike and didn’t get a good hook set, the next cast there is a sort of spastic splash on the surface during or directly after he takes the bait.  I assume it has something to do with their feeding behavior, either their tail splashing the surface in an ambush strike or them attempting to flee after taking the minnow and getting hooked. Either way It’s a pretty awesome experience, especially knowing you’ve for sure got them this time. Seems to happen exclusively with bigger (18+”) fish.  Experts, educate me!

[diehardbassfishing]

 

Ask the minnow - he's doing all the fishing!

 

Throw out a top-water lure, and more bass fisherman (especially the experts) can tell you exactly what's happening!

 

Karl

[diehardbassfishing]

3 hours ago, Ohioguy25 said:

using live minnows

 

Put down the live bait. Learn to fish like a Pro!

 

Karl

[KCFinesse]

I have a buddy who at one point had a largemouth, a spot, and a smallmouth in an aquarium. When feeding with live crayfish, the largemouth tended to inhale the crayfish, the spot tended to grab and shake them like a dog on a chew toy, and the smallie tended to repeatedly inhale and spit the crayfish until they were 'pliable'. I wonder if that is their reflex reaction anytime they chomp on something hard?

 

On a related note- I wonder if the 'just kill it first' attitude is what makes smallies and spots so fun to catch ?

 

-Jared

[Ohioguy25]

6 hours ago, diehardbassfishing said:

 

Put down the live bait. Learn to fish like a Pro!

 

Karl

Dude I didn’t ask you how you thought I should fish lol

4 hours ago, KCFinesse said:

I have a buddy who at one point had a largemouth, a spot, and a smallmouth in an aquarium. When feeding with live crayfish, the largemouth tended to inhale the crayfish, the spot tended to grab and shake them like a dog on a chew toy, and the smallie tended to repeatedly inhale and spit the crayfish until they were 'pliable'. I wonder if that is their reflex reaction anytime they chomp on something hard?

 

On a related note- I wonder if the 'just kill it first' attitude is what makes smallies and spots so fun to catch ?

 

-Jared

Yeah I’ve seen videos of smallies sucking them in and spitting them out, I think they do this until they get them tail first so they don’t get pinched going down maybe? Idk, I’m sure there’s a reason though. 

[Bluebasser86]

29 minutes ago, Ohioguy25 said:

Yeah I’ve seen videos of smallies sucking them in and spitting them out, I think they do this until they get them tail first so they don’t get pinched going down maybe? Idk, I’m sure there’s a reason though. 

Smallies have pretty tough mouths and the repeated impacted against their jaws and the typically rocky bottoms likely stuns the crawdads after it's done a few times over, making them easier to swallow. 

 

That's my theory and I'm sticking to it. 

[Spankey]

5 hours ago, Ohioguy25 said:

Dude I didn’t ask you how you thought I should fish lol

Yeah I’ve seen videos of smallies sucking them in and spitting them out, I think they do this until they get them tail first so they don’t get pinched going down maybe? Idk, I’m sure there’s a reason though. 

I believe you are correct about how they want to take in a bait. They hit it and stun it and orient it to the position they want. 

[roadwarrior]

This NEVER happens on the Tennessee River.  Fish generally only have one shot at a

bait/lure before the river takes it downstream. 

[Tatsu Dave]

I tend to fish unweighted stickbaits, never very deep, so I often see the surface bulge or boil as they twist around to smash it. We went out Tuesday in the heat to see what would bite, river was 84 degrees. Son caught a 3 1/2lb'er and he fought with heart! Look at plastic baits after a smallmouth has been on, I think they grin when they see senko's and snake o's coming.........enjoy your fishing OhioGuy  

[cyclops2]

Some of my smalls have scars & tears of the skin between the top of jaw and area to their eyes, They are butting  Today I had the tail hook of a Rapala hooked there. Pliers to back out the hook. I remove all other hooks to protect me & the fishes eyes.  Keep forgetting to squash down the barbs, Makes removing a hook so easy. From the fish or my hand.  

 

Edit   I DO KEEP 4 different lures with ALL the hooks & barbs. They are used when I go meat  fishing for seniors who can not get into boats anymore.

[TnRiver46]

On 7/3/2021 at 11:29 AM, Tatsu Dave said:

I tend to fish unweighted stickbaits, never very deep, so I often see the surface bulge or boil as they twist around to smash it. We went out Tuesday in the heat to see what would bite, river was 84 degrees. Son caught a 3 1/2lb'er and he fought with heart! Look at plastic baits after a smallmouth has been on, I think they grin when they see senko's and snake o's coming.........enjoy your fishing OhioGuy  

That’s wild, my river is 67 degrees 

[Tatsu Dave]

We been having some hot weather so far but never saw water temps this high this early. Its summer temps already, we are also catching fish which makes it all OK ?

[cyclops2]

All the gamefish sizes burrow into the big enough weed clumps to wait out the sun and cormorants. The cormorants leave about 2 hours before sundown. Come back about 3 hours after sunrise.