The color of bass

[Shad_Master]

Went out to my regular fishing hole over the lunch "hour" today and managed a very fat, healthy looking 14-15"er.  Most of the fish I have been catching in this lake range from very pale to very dark and all tend to have blue hue to them, but this one had a very definite yellow tinge to it.  It was about the color of a catfish ???  I have read/heard that fish will become lighter or darker in color based, to some extent on the depth where they have been hanging out, but go to wondering -- does the color of the bass give some clues about the bass (what they are eating, etc.) that can help figure out how to catch 'em?

[nwgabassmaster]

One would think that the food that they eat would lend to the color that they are, and, it might.  

However, I would be more apt to pay more attention to the fish that are swimming around, as that will give you the definite answer as to what they are eating.

As for the color of the bass, if there was an area that had a little more yellowish stain to it, etc., and that area has been there for a while, that would tell me that the bass was hanging out in that area for a while.

[texasbass1]

I don't know about what they have been eating, but bass will change color based on water color. The clearer the water the darker colored the bass and the muddier the water the bass will be almost white in color.

[Shad_Master]

The thing that got me interested in this is that I have recently caught three bass, similar size right in this same spot. One was pale, washed out like you described. The next was almost coal black it was so dark and then this one (green and yellow -- just like a catfish/don't know my catfish well enough to say which one), but he was definitely "bright yellow" enough so that it was obviously different. Just a curiosity I guess.

[texasbass1]

You may want to check with your State Fisheries department about it. It may have been a hybrid species.

[nwgabassmaster]

I seriously doubt that it was a hybrid.  The darker the fish, the deeper they have been.  The lighter the color, the shallower.

If the water is clear, the bass will be dark.  If it has a stain or is muddy, the bass will be lighter in color.

I have caught several bass that you have described, and it's just a part of the depth of water and clarity of water that you catch them from.

Also, remember, that bass do move, so, it could have been in a shallow, stained environment, and then, moved to clearer water.  It takes 2-3 days for the coloring to change, from what I have seen.

[Pond-Pro]

       I am pretty sure that the bass change colors to blend in with their surroundings. Then the bass are less likely to get ate.

[Chris]

Sometimes when you catch fish out of a spot and they differ in color it could be caused by depth bottom color if it was in cover or around it. Sometimes the color of the cover would change the bass's color some. If the bass is a odd ball color then it might just be a odd ball fish. I caught a 6lb bass one time that had bright yellow under its lip and on the sides. I have caught some with big spots before. Like many things sometimes you get a odd ball.

[AceHigh]

This is simple, the more sun the bass is exposed to the darker it will get.  In many man made reserviors where the water color varies from place to place and day to day or the fish can get well out of the depth of light penetrating the water then you will get a mixed bag of fish.  I have caught nearly white largemouths feeding with nearly black ones, the lighter ones just recently left deep water to feed and the dark one may have moved up a month earlier.  And some bass get accustomed to staying in muddy water.

Near my home is where a large muddy farmland river meets a clear mountain source river; where the two mix is an exceptional fishing hole.  The muddy water holds the bass, but they love to jump out in the clear water when a baitfish slips out of the muddy water cover or just where the muddy gets diluted to reveal the baifish.

[roadwarrior]

My favorite colors are bright bronze with black vertical stripes. Like their cousins, colors are sometimes vibrant and sometimes light and dull. The water I fish is stained and relatively shallow, but even a small difference in depth, say 10',  can have a dramatic impact on the color and brightness of the bass. They tend to grow bigger in deep water, too!

[fireandice]

I'm no expert here, but AceHigh seems to have the answer that goes along with my personal experience. I have a very shallow and warm golf course pond that I fish and those fish are very dark green even on the belly with a hint of yellow and blue. On the other hand, my favorite haunt has good depth and is spring fed with plenty of cover and those fish are very light green with a very white belly.

[Matt Fly]

I'll have to agree with Texasbass1.  If you fish thick hydrilla, you can tell which bass lives in grass year around by color. A dark looking bass can come from deep water and under the grass which goes back to" light penatration", grass bass can even have a little greyish on the upper sides of her bellie. Muddy or cloudy (light penatration) water produce the lighter color.

[Matt Fly]

If you check out the pictures on the lower posting on lilypads/hydrilla choking out>   You will see what a bass looks like when its in vegitation year around compared to the cruisers out in the open water.  The first bass is dark, the second is black, black real black.  I would identify those as bass who had lived in the matted grassy for awhile.  1month or longer.