Fishing After A Shad Kill

[roadwarrior]

The arctic cold that swept through the nation has

impacted a variety of fish species. Most notable

are native threadfin shad, referred to as yellowtail

locally. This species cannot survive when water

temperatures drop below 45 degrees.

As a result of the cold, many of the lakes and rivers

in the Mid West and Mid South are experiencing

massive shad die-offs. This is not all bad...

On the White River in Missouri and Arkansas the

shad kill results in a feeding frenzy for the trout

population, especially for German Browns. The

Browns lose all inhibition and monsters are being

caught. However, I am told this does not hold true

for other species on other rivers which brings us

to the point:

I'm headed to the Tennessee River and have been

told by all the locals that we won't catch a thing until

the shad carcass' wash through the system.

If you have experience under these conditions

on any water, please comment. I'm looking for

suggestions.

Thanks!

8-)

[cart7t]

Dying shad are the primary staple of bass in the midwest in Jan-very early April.  As you fish you'll often see large shad, up to 12" just under the surface and barely swimming along in their final days.  there are many more you can't see.  They've lost some control of their ability to adjust their swim bladder to maintain bouyancy.

These are prime targets for big bass.  Incapable of escaping due to their sickened nature, a big shad becomes a full sized meal for a LM without it having to expend much energy to get it.

it's the reason suspending jerkbaits work so well in that Jan - early Apr. time frame.  They mimic the dying movements of a shad perfectly.

[Shane J]

Just think how fat that world record smallmouth is getting!

[Gangley]

i was walking by a small lake/large pond near my house the other day and saw a bunch of shad (4-6 inches) lying dead on the banks. I didnt even know there were shad in this body of water. Atleast I know what baits to throw now

[Triton_Mike]

The arctic cold that swept through the nation has

impacted a variety of fish species. Most notable

are native threadfin shad, referred to as yellowtail

locally. This species cannot survive when water

temperatures drop below 45 degrees.

As a result of the cold, may of the lakes and rivers

in the Mid West and Mid South are experiencing

massive shad die-offs. This is not all bad...

On the White River in Missouri and Arkansas the

shad kill results in a feeding frenzy for the trout

population, especially for German Browns. The

Browns lose all inhibition and monsters are being

caught. However, I am told this does not hold true

for other species on other rivers which brings us

to the point:

I'm headed to the Tennessee River and have been

told by all the locals that we won't catch a thing until

the shad carcass' wash through the system.

If you have experience under these conditions

on any water, please comment. I'm looking for

suggestions.

Thanks!

8-)

Kent, If you can't beat them join them. Best thing I have found is the Float N Fly. Match the hatch and go to work. This from yesterdays trip. Water temp 42 to 44 and the river is frozen as far into the lake as I have ever seen it. Feels like I live up North or something LOL

[roadwarrior]

Woo-hoo!

Nice fish!

[SPEEDBEAD.]

The arctic cold that swept through the nation has

impacted a variety of fish species. Most notable

are native threadfin shad, referred to as yellowtail

locally. This species cannot survive when water

temperatures drop below 45 degrees.

As a result of the cold, may of the lakes and rivers

in the Mid West and Mid South are experiencing

massive shad die-offs. This is not all bad...

On the White River in Missouri and Arkansas the

shad kill results in a feeding frenzy for the trout

population, especially for German Browns. The

Browns lose all inhibition and monsters are being

caught. However, I am told this does not hold true

for other species on other rivers which brings us

to the point:

I'm headed to the Tennessee River and have been

told by all the locals that we won't catch a thing until

the shad carcass' wash through the system.

If you have experience under these conditions

on any water, please comment. I'm looking for

suggestions.

Thanks!

8-)

Kent, If you can't beat them join them. Best thing I have found is the Float N Fly. Match the hatch and go to work. This from yesterdays trip. Water temp 42 to 44 and the river is frozen as far into the lake as I have ever seen it. Feels like I live up North or something LOL

You dont suppose a Bull Shad would work, do you?   Float and Fly?  You make THE shad bait and you're recommending the Float and Fly?  ;D  What is wrong with that picture?   

Doesnt get much closer to the real thing...

[Paul Roberts]

Kent, there was an article by, or an interview of, Jim Duckworth -a guide in Tennessee. During an extremely cold winter a few years ago he was having up to 100 fish days on CBs due to shad kills. I believe it was In-Fisherman, or maybe BASSMASTER.

Here's another piece about it:

http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/bassmaster/

columns/story?page=b_col_bt_tips_tactics_0512

Here's his site. I see he's also talking FnFly lately:

http://www.fishingtennessee.com/Ducktrail/default.htm

[Gatorbassman]

Those are some great fish Mike.

RW I remember several years back a big shad kill on one of the lakes I fish. The only thing I could catch them on was a long leader C-Rig with a fluke on the hook. The bass were just waiting on the bottom for a shad to fall down to them.

[zero limit]

The arctic cold that swept through the nation has

impacted a variety of fish species. Most notable

are native threadfin shad, referred to as yellowtail

locally. This species cannot survive when water

temperatures drop below 45 degrees.

Hey Rw

up here we have both treadfin and gizzard shad,that seem to make it thru the ice seasons.

Is it possible the water temps on the bottom of these lakes are above 45deg.?

[roadwarrior]

There are a lot of baitfish species in the Great

Lakes region, but threadfin is not one of them:

http://fishing.about.com/od/fishfacts/a/threadfin_shad.htm

As this article sates, 45* is where threadfin

start dying, but 42* seems to be the critical

"drop-dead" temperature.

[J Francho]

We don't have threadfin.  Am. Shad, Gizzard, Hickory, and Alewife.

Every ice out, there are tons of Am. shad die offs.  Big ones, too.  Its a catfish feeding fest.

[KSRonH]

In the midwest, (Kansas), Right after ice out we catch a lot of bass on heavy jigging spoons on deep breaks. The spoons imitate the shad that has been frozen in the ice. Typically I'll use 3/4 or 1 oz spoons in 35' of water along the channel breaks. Then as the south March winds start warming things up, a lot of these dead shad get pushed up in the shallow north coves. That is where we find the cats in the shallow warmer water feasting on their shad smorgasbord. It works in Kansas RW, but not sure in Tennessee with a different forage base. I definitely would try a jigging spoons if you can mark fish along the deeper channel breaks.

[CWB]

There are threadfin shad in the Illinois river, at least there were. I pre-fished for a PWT walleye tourney a few years back with my brother-in-law and there was a die-off happening.

[5bass]

This happens about every other year on my home lake and the bass get very hard to catch. You really have to mimic the dying shad as close as you can. I usually have to go to a lighter spoon during this time and if you fish anything on the bottom, make sure it's shad colored and fish it slow like it's on it's last leg.

We actually had some luck with some 3" and 4" senko's in the white/silver shad color. They took forever to sink, but so does a dying shad. We added the 'kill dots' to the senko's with a Sharpie marker.

[Brush Hog20]

I have had the pleasure of flyfishing the White River during a shad kill. Its absolutley crazy. The trout will hit anything that is white at any water level even strike indicators. They are like pirhannas during this time. It was the one the of single craziest things thats happened to me on the water. Not just small trout either. Literally a half dozen 20 inch plus fish will charge your fly at a time. It makes it hard to hook up cuz you can never tell when they are on and sometimes they just all miss it becuase some many are hitting at the same time. Not to mention the white is gin clear so you see them coming and you get a little anxious with the hook sets.

[Randall]

Weightless fluke (the flat one) on light fluro line 4lb just cast it out and let it fall flat side down. When it hits bottom or you think it did just reel back up and cast again. Sometimes you will tighten up to reel in and the fish is just holding the bait. Below fifteen feet I add a small split shot up the line or insert weight in the middle of the fluke. It's painfully slow fishing but it works better than anything I have tried in a big shad kill.

A really well balanced level or tail first falling slow sinking shad type swimbait or crankbait will work also at times. I just count it down and give it a twitch or two as it falls through the water. You can weight a shad rap to fall tail first and sink like this.  A light flutter type spoon will do the same thing. 

I have found that super slow falling baits like this do much better than suspending baits like jerkbaits or float and flys once the shad are dying in large numbers. I think the bass key in on the natural slow falling action of the shad and will not hit much else.

[WRB]

The water temperature affects the bass also, they may not die as long as the core water temps don't drop more than 10 degrees over night. Threadfin are very susceptible to winter die off due to cold water as noted.

Basstrix Flash minnow and Baitfry in shad colors, drop shotted, should also work well on cold water bass. If the bass seem to be active then structure spoons, jigs, weighted Pointer jerkbait and small 3" to 4" swimbaits should also work.

WRB

[roadwarrior]

Thanks guys!

I will post results this weekend.

-Kent

8-)

[CWB]

I like FBL's senko deal. Should work.

[roadwarrior]

Nothing, not even a single bite. We talked with

just about every other boat on the river. As far

as I can tell, one drum was caught among the

twenty or so fisherman. Otherwise, no one got

a bite on artificials or live bait.

Thanks for the suggestions anyhow!

-Kent

[Paul Roberts]

Such is fishin'. 

Thanks for the follow up.

[bmadd]

RW- where were you fishing? I'm planning on fishing around the Paris area tomorrow.

[grimlin]

Nothing, not even a single bite. We talked with

just about every other boat on the river. As far

as I can tell, one drum was caught among the

twenty or so fisherman. Otherwise, no one got

a bite on artificials or live bait.

Thanks for the suggestions anyhow!

-Kent

Commonly happens to me here....which is why i don't care to fish late fall/winter.I'm usually done bass fishing in November.

[roadwarrior]

RW- where were you fishing? I'm planning on fishing around the Paris area tomorrow.

Below Pickwick Dam. Next weekend will be the

same. It will take another week or two to wash

the dead through the river system.