Spawning Location

[Long Mike]

Everything I have read says the bass "usually" spawn in one to three feet of water.  Obviouly, bass could easily spawn in deeper water, depending upon it's clarity - I think.  Is the AMOUNT of light itself the deciding factor, or is it the HEAT generated by the sunlight that prompts spawning depth.  As a novice, my rationalization is that they are somehow both important, for reasons I do not yet understand.  That said, I think the heat generated is much more important than the amount of light.  Therefore, based on my almost surely faulty analysis, spawning beds are always found in shallow water.

Please feel free to rip me apart.  I'm trying to learn.

Mike

[Other.]

I read some were that it has to be a certain temperature for a bass to spawn. If the water gets to cold the female bass will just swim down and do nothing not even eat untill its the right temperature to spawn. Well if you cant spawn at a certain temperature then I'm sure heat is more important then light as light can travel far down into water, however shallows heat up faster and also weeds tend to grow there first so the shallows on a lake is prime spawning location.  

[5bass]

Obviously the bright sun heats up the shallower water better and will heat the bed,therefore warming the eggs to enable hatching. I feel like both are very important to a successful spawn.

I've seen largemouth spawning so shallow that their back fins are out of the water like sharks and I've also seen smallmouth spawning at 6' - 7' deep in crystal clear water.

[Randall]

I personally think the amount of light has more to do with it than heat. The water will need to be warm enough for the fish to spawn but some fish spawn in places with real clear water at depths that sunlight does little to warm that depth of water. I read somewhere in someones research that after just a few feet of water sunlight does very little to warm water or objects on the bottom since the rays that warm things are mostly already absorbed in the top layers of the water. So, with this in mind I have to say its not because of the warming powers of the sun.

[5bass]

So, with this in mind I have to say its not because of the warming powers of the sun.

After I witnessed the huge smallmouth spawning 6' down,I started to wonder about how much effect the sun really has on the eggs. But on the other hand,the largemouth really like to be in the direct light and for the most part,very shallow.

I guess we'll know the precise answer once we can get a bass to talk.

[Randall]

Let me also add that the shallow water will warm first and bring more fish into the shallow water since the water is warmer. I think the final determining factor of where a bed will be is a combination of things like the fish feeling secure, the water being the right temp, the right type of bottom, the right amount of light etc. It just can't be one factor like heat or light that determines where the bed will be located.

[5bass]

I've noticed in my home lake that the largemouth like to spawn either under a small branch of brush,beside a log,or short stump or beside a rock etc....that obstruction helps keep the predators off the bed and makes it easier to guard,thus creating that comfort zone. Of course there are the exceptions that will spawn out in the open with nothing around.

I've also witnessed smallmouth spawning right on top of slate (flat) rocks as long as there is just a little bit of silt on the rock that they can fan away to make a bed.

[ww2farmer]

On my lake, most of the "average" size bass less than 5lbs will spawn in very shallow water often only 1-2 feet deep, the bigger bass however spawn deeper, as much as 5-7 feet deep. The bigger bass also spawn earlier, the average bass spawn in waves from early may to mid june. Also location has a lot to do with it, north end bass will be on beds in may, just 3 short miles down lake at the south end, the bass will still be in prespawn. I am talking all LM here too...don't know enough about the SM spawn to say so. I think the reason the bigger bass spawn earlier and deeper has nothing to do with light/heat, heck I have seen them on beds in late April in 58 degree water. It has all to do with security/comfort, spawn deeper next to escape routes, spawn deeper to aviod burning tons of energy chasing away the swarms of bluegills in the shallows, and spawn deeper and earlier to avoid fishing pressure which is greatest in shallow water in the spring. Thats my .02

[Catt]

Large mouth bass that are located on main lake structure spawn in depths of 8 to 12'.

These main lake bass have been known to spawn in the tops of the trees in 50 foot of water.

The bass located on main lake structure spend their entire life never having seen a shoreline.

[Gatorbassman]

These are my own observations during the spawn.

Many people say that bass won't start spawning untill the water temp reaches 65 degrees. I used to live by this rule untill the best day of bed fishing I have ever had was in 57 degree water. I have caught bass on the bed when the water temp was 85 degrees.

Last year I was sight fishing for bedding bass in very clear water. The bass were bedding next to stumps in 15ft of water.

Depending on what part of the country you live in bass might start bedding as early as January or as late as June. I caught this bass off the bed last year in the Savannah River, at the base of the Clarks Hill Dam. It was July 15th. Water temp was 63 degrees.

I know of a small lake here in Georgia that you can mark St Patricks day on your calander and on that day the bass just be starting to spawn, but the other 20 small lakes within a 1/4 mile won't start for another three weeks.

So from my experiance I can tell you that bass will spawn when they are ready to spawn. They will spawn as shallow as they feel comfortable.  They like just enough light penetration to be able to see to protect their bed. If possible they like something to protect at least one side of the bed. (log, stick, stump, rock, weeds, ect..) They love holes in grass. They prefer a hard sandy bottom. I have seen them bed on top of a stump though. The first places you will find spawning bass are in areas that are protected from North and West winds. As the water and the weather warms they will spawn just about anywhere.

[justfishin]

I live a very short distance from a small 250 acre lake that is gin clear. Most of the bass I " see " that spawn in this lake are usually doing so around the last week of April to the  first two weeks of May. Its almost like clockwork every year. Most of the green bass are on three main gravel and sand flats in 1-3 feet of water but, one day years ago I saw some old beds in a area in 10-15 feet of water. The following year I fished that spot and caught some real nice smallies in that area. I also caught a few largemouth there although, they seemed to be in the 5 foot range. This raised a lot of questions for me and would probably be a good post. I gathered out of that experience that green bass, at times, spawn in deeper water if it is clear and I proved to myself that smallies will spawn deep but, a question remains, will they spawn together in the same general area as I caught a mixed bag that day. They were not exactly together but, were within 20 or so yards of each other. What say you fisherman? Will green and brown bass spawn in the same general area at times? Have you ever experienced this phenomenon?

[Catt]

Every body of water in every geological location is completely different

Every bass in every body of water is completely different

There are more environmental conditions evolved than we can imagine and no one has even mentioned biological conditions. All living creatures have a gestation period, the length of time from when the eggs first start developing until the eggs are laid. Until this time period has been reached the female will not lay her eggs.

There are way too many environmental and biological conditions required for the spawn to take place so at best we can only guess based on our each individual geological location.

Toledo Bend Reservoir is 65+ miles long, bass start spawning on the North end as early as Mid-January and continues down South until late April or early May. Shoreline related bass will spawn in water as shallow as 6 to 8, while main lake bass will spawn in water 8 to 12'.

Bass will spawn when ever and where ever environmental and biological conditions a favorable.

[justfishin]

I agree a 100% Catt.

[CJ]

Large mouth bass that are located on main lake structure spawn in depths of 8 to 12'.

These main lake bass have been known to spawn in the tops of the trees in 50 foot of water.

The bass located on main lake structure spend their entire life never having seen a shoreline.

Do you feel that bass that spawn shallow stay shallow?

You make an interesting point.I fish alot of offshore structure.I have always heard that bass live within a certain area.I have caught fish that were atleast a mile in any direction to shoreline.But I still feel that bass on a river system will have a wider range.

[Catt]

CJBasswacker

Not at all, what I'm saying is bass spawn where they live

On some large bodies of water there are shallow water (shoreline) bass and there are deep water bass and the two never meet.

[cabela10]

I've also seen smallmouth spawning at 6' - 7' deep in crystal clear water.

Thats normal for smallmouth, thats the depths that they spawn at.  They don't go as shallow usually as largemouth.  That's why 6-8' sand-gravel flats are perfect to hookup with a spawning smallmouth.

[cabela10]

I've noticed in my home lake that the largemouth like to spawn either under a small branch of brush,beside a log,or short stump or beside a rock etc....that obstruction helps keep the predators off the bed and makes it easier to guard,thus creating that comfort zone. Of course there are the exceptions that will spawn out in the open with nothing around.

I've also witnessed smallmouth spawning right on top of slate (flat) rocks as long as there is just a little bit of silt on the rock that they can fan away to make a bed.

They lay there eggs on or near rocks because they heat up from the sun better than the water does.

[ARfishermen08]

i don't have much experience fishing large acre lakes such as bull shoals or table rock, but during the spawn season of medium to small acre lakes i've found most bass to spawn anywere from 4' deep up to as shallow as almost seeing their top fin out of the water. I caught my biggest largemouth (8 lbs) in about 1 foot of water on a buzz bait.