Finding Bass - Bluegill Patterns??

[p-funk]

I've read a lot about Bass following shad into back of coves and so forth in the fall.  What about lakes that don't have shad where bluegill and crappie are the main food source?  Do these baitfish make similar movements to shad and do Bass follow them or is it a whole new ball game?  Just curious because a lot of the lakes we have locally here do not have shad in them.  

One lake specifically has a lot of coontail weeds and lily pads that have not died out yet.  The water temp has dropped down to about 55 degrees.  Water depth in this section of the lake is anywhere from 4-10'.  The main part of the lake is approx 14-16' deep at it'd deepest point.  It's an 80 acre lake and all of my larger fish have came from the weed area of the lake.  Will these fish continue to hold in that same area or will they move to the deeper section of lake?  Do the bluegill and so forth still hold in that weedy area?

[Guest the_muddy_man]

hey Im glad someome started this I was fishin for bluegills a few years ago and i was reeling one in past an old dock post and the biggest bass i never caught gulped that sucker right down, lost every thing including the bobber so last spring I fish a few ponds in and around  this industrial park by me. I looked to see what they were eating, spent a couple of hours on the shore just watching.

 They were killing dragonflies, and these salamanders were everywhere, they didnt seem to be too anxious on those. then I went to part of the pond that you could see the bluegill spawning beds, and they were thick in there.

 I could see overy the next hour or so bass of various sizes either cruising these bed areas or mostly hanging out by some structure, mostly weed and rocks and every once in a while you could actuallya bass flare his gills and one less bluegill in the pond.

  So I started fishing these areas using Bagleys Small Fry Bream , got them from BPS and it has really paid off shore fishing this way

 I must say though it seems seasonal from when the gillies get on thier beds in the spring until early summer then plastic worms take over and hardly even a chase on the gillie imitations

[basspro48]

Actually, bass that hold on vegetation will feed on 'gills year round. Bluegills like protected weedy areas because they like to eat all the little critters that live in 'em. So bluegill will relate to the same areas most of the time. The exception is when the water gets to cold or if there is an extreme front coming through and it pushes them deeper.  

Here's some really good baits for imitating bream.

http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catalog.TextId?hvarTextId=56948&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults

http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catalog.TextId?hvarTextId=29910&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults

http://www.***.com/descpageMATTLSB-MLBG.html#

Hope this helps.

[Guest avid]

Actually, bass that hold on vegetation will feed on 'gills year round.

this is really true.  Bagley makes a great little bluegill crankbait.  It is so much fun to fish.

[Rattlinrogue]

In my home lake,blue gill are a major part of the bass diet.Just like your lake,there is a huge relatively shallow flat that is thick with grass.Most times of the year,If nothing else works you can always depend on catching a few there.I have a 25 year old Rebel shallow running c-bait in a "bream" pattern that is dynamite on bass.To my knowledge,Rebel doesn't make that particular pattern anymore.I'd sure love to get my hands on a shallow c-bait with such a true "bream" look to it.

[basswest1]

I often fish lakes, ponds and other impoundments that lack open water forage such as shad, pond smelt ect.  

During the fall different things happen at different parts of the country.  For example...A lake I fished recently in Connecticut which one of the main foods is bluegill, still had vegetation such as lilly pads various submerged vegetation.  The bluegills however were totally gone from the shoreline.  The lake was very clear and was 30ft at its deepest with weeds to about 15'.  The fish were suspended over the 15' weedlines.  They were actually on the surface.  On calm days you could see the bluegill's backs just poking out of the water.  Rarely would you see them strike the surface.  You would just see their backs, there would be hundreds of them.  I would just cast a grub, tube with a slow fall and work under the school.

Down south however, like in florida where I am right now, the bluegill will stay in heavy vegetation in the shallows.  During bright days I will find a nice patch of HEALTHY vegetation with a channel edge swinging close to it.  What would even make it better is a stump or brushpile placed right on the weed edge.  Earlier in the fall bluegills will be shallower. later on in the season they will pull off onto deeper outside edges.

[Rattlinrogue]

I just got back from Walmart.Was looking in the fishing dept. and found a blue gill swim bait that looked alfully good.So good that I bought It.It was called Storm wild-eyed Bluegill(3 in.).Can't wait to try it.Three to a pack.

[roadwarrior]

I caught my PB from at a local public pond in September on a Norman Fat Boy, bluegill pattern. I was running the lure parallel to the bank along a ledge. This big girl was staging in deeper water and making forays into the the shallows chasing minnows and blue gill. The bass was caught about ten minutes before sunrise and measued 27 1/4" . I estimated the weight at about 12 lbs.

[Chris]

Bluegills, small bass, and crappie are still a schooling fish. I cannot count how many times I have caught a big fish that had either a good sized crappie or bluegill tail hanging in the back of its throat. In the fall you still have a big push of crappie that bass feed on. Even though you don't have shad you still have the spring hatch that is doing the same thing.  They school up the same as shad but they don't do the open water thing and run around in mass schools and ball up. Bass follow food and where you find shell crackers or crappie you will also find bass. Late fall early winter the gills and crappie fall back to deeper water and still hang around any hard cover or green cover. Splatter back black is a good color for a crappie imitator. Bass pattern colors work well also and dark colors and greens look like gills. Don't forget crawfish because and areas that they might be in. The main thing is to find areas that hold the gills and crappie and the bass will be in the same areas. They will hold in the shallows until the weeds start to die then when the crappie move to the hard cover the bass move there also. Some areas also have a fall crappie spawn that is a magnet to bass.