Which do you think a bass prefers?

[SDoolittle]

I read somewhere that as much as 80% of a smallmouth's diet is crawdads.

[BASSclary]

Budweiser

I thought that was only southern bass, I heard Yankee bass prefer a nice Pinot Grigio.

[BASSclary]

I think it largely depends on the time of year, shad in fall, craws in summer, and everything in spring.

[fishinflip415]

I think the crawdad is a higher protein meal for a bass and I personally think that if a bass had a choice they would eat a crawdad over a baitfish. But from my experience certain times of year they will key in more on bait fish. Also to add I read one response where someone said that there lake or pond didn't have crayfish and I'm almost 100% sure that crayfish are in all lakes and ponds across the u.s. Just cause you do not see the. Doesn't mean they are not there.

[BASSclary]

I think the crawdad is a higher protein meal for a bass and I personally think that if a bass had a choice they would eat a crawdad over a baitfish. But from my experience certain times of year they will key in more on bait fish. Also to add I read one response where someone said that there lake or pond didn't have crayfish and I'm almost 100% sure that crayfish are in all lakes and ponds across the u.s. Just cause you do not see the. Doesn't mean they are not there.

What about man-made reservoirs? they don't have to put Crawfish in them. Just saying, not all places have craws.

[Hammer 4]

I think the crawdad is a higher protein meal for a bass and I personally think that if a bass had a choice they would eat a crawdad over a baitfish. But from my experience certain times of year they will key in more on bait fish. Also to add I read one response where someone said that there lake or pond didn't have crayfish and I'm almost 100% sure that crayfish are in all lakes and ponds across the u.s. Just cause you do not see the. Doesn't mean they are not there.

What about man-made reservoirs? they don't have to put Crawfish in them. Just saying, not all places have craws.

Most of our lakes are man made, and as far as I know, they ALL have craws in them..

[BASSclary]

I think the crawdad is a higher protein meal for a bass and I personally think that if a bass had a choice they would eat a crawdad over a baitfish. But from my experience certain times of year they will key in more on bait fish. Also to add I read one response where someone said that there lake or pond didn't have crayfish and I'm almost 100% sure that crayfish are in all lakes and ponds across the u.s. Just cause you do not see the. Doesn't mean they are not there.

What about man-made reservoirs? they don't have to put Crawfish in them. Just saying, not all places have craws.

Most of our lakes are man made, and as far as I know, they ALL have craws in them..

Yeah, but a small man-made pond wont have craws in it unless someone puts them there

[Dam Yankee]

I think the crawdad is a higher protein meal for a bass and I personally think that if a bass had a choice they would eat a crawdad over a baitfish. But from my experience certain times of year they will key in more on bait fish. Also to add I read one response where someone said that there lake or pond didn't have crayfish and I'm almost 100% sure that crayfish are in all lakes and ponds across the u.s. Just cause you do not see the. Doesn't mean they are not there.

What about man-made reservoirs? they don't have to put Crawfish in them. Just saying, not all places have craws.

Most of our lakes are man made, and as far as I know, they ALL have craws in them..

Yeah, but a small man-made pond wont have craws in it unless someone puts them there

Sure they will. I got em in my front yard. they make the most annoying dirt mounds.

[BASSclary]

I stand corrected.

[RoLo]

Even if I were a bass, I doubt that I could answer that question without first living in the lake.

If the lake were teeming with golden shiners, I seriously doubt that I'd be looking for crayfish,

even if I actually knew what a crayfish was. And vice versa of course.

Long story short, game fish are opportunistic predators; else their name is mud.

Roger

[OHIO]

I stand corrected.

Don't give up too easy.

Craws are definitely not in all ponds/lakes.

They are in a lot, but not all.

[grimlin]

Doing my homework here I picked craws...because during molting craw shell formation requires large levels of the aromatic amino acid phenylalanine, equivalent to Aspartame, an artificial sweetener.

I think it's almost impossible to tell what they prefer since Bass need a mixed diet. Much like us. So the prefer food could change on a daily basic from shad/baitfish/bluegills/craws and even bugs which are high in protein list. This is all my opinion and some things I've read of course.

[bilgerat]

I think we anglers apply our sense of preference, tastes, visual appeal, etc. to try and understand it from a fish's "point of view", which, IMO, can lead to confusion.

A fish's brain probably is wired for basic survival and nothing more. How much does a jig look like an actual crawfish ? What in nature resembles a Senko ? a tube ? a spoon ?

Anything we throw is an attempt to trigger the mechanism within the fish. I don't find it hard to believe that a bass that has never seen a craw would ****** it in a second. It's responding to the 'gotta eat' signal. Nothing more. I've seen shows where island inhabitants of the Pacific catch fish on strips of white cloth (to use as bait for larger fish) They do this because white triggers that mechanism, likely because white is the belly color of a large percentage of underwater food. Fish are simple, and the natives are simple in their approach.

I think a bass prefers whatever is going to fill his belly.

[A-Jay]

I went with Craws - looking forward to the final results.

A-Jay

[David P]

From what I have heard, craws have more protein, get bigger, and are certainly easier to catch.. Less exerted energy and more filling meal.. Craws!

[piscicidal]

I think we anglers apply our sense of preference, tastes, visual appeal, etc. to try and understand it from a fish's "point of view", which, IMO, can lead to confusion.

A fish's brain probably is wired for basic survival and nothing more. How much does a jig look like an actual crawfish ? What in nature resembles a Senko ? a tube ? a spoon ?

Anything we throw is an attempt to trigger the mechanism within the fish. I don't find it hard to believe that a bass that has never seen a craw would ****** it in a second. It's responding to the 'gotta eat' signal. Nothing more. I've seen shows where island inhabitants of the Pacific catch fish on strips of white cloth (to use as bait for larger fish) They do this because white triggers that mechanism, likely because white is the belly color of a large percentage of underwater food. Fish are simple, and the natives are simple in their approach.

I think a bass prefers whatever is going to fill his belly.

Exactly.

I think some people make the mistake of equating a bass "preference" with a conscious choice.  I doubt a bass "prefers" certain foods over others based on attributes that humans find appealing  (taste, visual appeal, etc..).

From a biological standpoint, I think "preference" to a bass is simply a matter of maximum caloric intake with minimal energy expended. It would explain why an injured bait often evokes a triggered response on a fish that isn't actively feeding (less energy expended chasing an injured bait) or why a 9" bass attacks a 10" plastic worm (bigger bait= more energy intake).

Bass are hard wired to eat that which will offer the most intake with least energy expended. I would think that sucking up a crawfish expends less energy than chasing down a shad so, given equal opportunity, I'm sure they would "prefer" crawfish. Of course if your lake doesn't have crawfish or has an abdundance of shad, that alters the "opportunity" side of the equation and the fish may key on the shad.

[slonezp]

I think we anglers apply our sense of preference, tastes, visual appeal, etc. to try and understand it from a fish's "point of view", which, IMO, can lead to confusion.

A fish's brain probably is wired for basic survival and nothing more. How much does a jig look like an actual crawfish ? What in nature resembles a Senko ? a tube ? a spoon ?

Anything we throw is an attempt to trigger the mechanism within the fish. I don't find it hard to believe that a bass that has never seen a craw would ****** it in a second. It's responding to the 'gotta eat' signal. Nothing more. I've seen shows where island inhabitants of the Pacific catch fish on strips of white cloth (to use as bait for larger fish) They do this because white triggers that mechanism, likely because white is the belly color of a large percentage of underwater food. Fish are simple, and the natives are simple in their approach.

I think a bass prefers whatever is going to fill his belly.

Let me add this.

A jig or tube can represent a crawfish, a bluegill, a baitfish... a Senko, a worm, which do occur naturally when land is flooded.

I'm not sure if a fish knows the nutritional value of anything it eats. Maybe they know they get more energy from eating one meal rather than another. Who knows?

I believe water temp., instinct, metabolism, barametric pressure, moon phases, territorial behaviour etc. have more impact on what a fish eats than just baitfish or craw. How do you explain fish gourging? How many times have you caught a bass that is spitting up craws or baitfish or both in your livewells?

[5lb smallie]

I read a study where bass favored crawfish 24 to 1 to bluegill/shad.

[Bankbeater]

I went with shad.

[bassman31783]

From what I have heard, craws have more protein, get bigger, and are certainly easier to catch.. Less exerted energy and more filling meal.. Craws!

X2

Exactly how I would have worded it. 

[brushhoggin]

I read a study where bass favored crawfish 24 to 1 to bluegill/shad.

i would love to see a link

[BASSclary]

^ me also ^

[bassman31783]

^

24 to 1 sounded way too extreme to me so I did a little research to see if there was at least any info to back his statement and this is all I could find.

http://www.thinklikeabass.com/july_bass_fishing_articles.html

I'll go ahead & copy & past the important section.

The first element we will talk about is FOOD. Contrary to popular belief, shad is NOT! the primary 1st choice of a bass. Although shad is a very common food for the bass as well as other natural baits, the number one food choice of a bass is a crawfish (also known as crayfish, crawdads, etc.). A study was performed several years ago where 100 Crawfish and 100 shad were in a tank of water with all species of bass (Smallmouth, Spotted, and Largemouth), and to much surprise the crawfish were eaten 8 to 2 over the shad. There are several reasons for this, but the most important one is that a crawfish is an easy prey for a bass to catch, and they are fairly easy for a bass to find. And once again contrary to popular belief, studies show that there are actually more crawfish found in vegetation areas than around rocky areas (or as some may know as Rip-Rap.)

Definitely not 24 to 1 but the bass, in a controlled environment, sure preferred the crawfish.

[5bass]

Poll is done.

Definitely not the same results as last time. Thanks to all who voted.

[BASSclary]

That poll was extremely close.