The fish keep on comin….

Even though it was 40mph+ yesterday, my frends Clayton and Justin took me to a private pit for some fishing. We had trouble even getting the anchor to hold, but finally got into some fish. Lots of channel cats, drum, white bass, and some nice crappies were caught. Now that I think about it, I think I only managed 3 or 4 fish all day, so I was outfished pretty bad. But, I was trying to do something a little different and it did pay off with this nice 21″ LMB I pulled out of some heavy cover. I don’t know if you can tell, but its tail was pretty roughed up. I don’t know much about LMB, so I’m guessing it’s a male protecting or working on a bed. Any insight would be nice. It didn’t even go 4lbs, but sure fought like it was 8. Another good day with good friends.

That bass looks sick or something. Heck of a fish though too bad it wasnt a female full of eggs

Sounds like a good day of fishing! I probably would not have even hooked up the boat with that kind of wind and missed out. Looks bigger than 4# to me

Iam not sure there are many 21″ male fish around. At that size I would guess it was a spawned out female. By the look of the fish it was a long hard spawn in your area.

Its got a head of a 8# but body of a 4#. Nice fish though that things a beast.
And that tail ain’t too bad I have caught one before where the tail was just a stump. If its a male fish better to have a ugly fin than just a stump

Definitely a spawned out female…look at the concave belly and tail damage from making her bed. Males don’t make the beds but will guard them when she is done laying eggs.

Nice CPR!

Thanks guys. I didn’t figure there were many males out there that size either, but anything is possible. I’m not a bass guy, but with access to numerous private areas only 6 to 10 miles from home, it’s hard not to go out for a few hours here and there. This fish sure did look like it had a rough immediate history, so I figured it was beat up from spawning. Thanks for the info; always willing to learn more so I can catch more. They sure are fun!

Most likely a spawned-out female. It would be very rare for a male largemouth bass in Nebraska to reach that size.

I have spent some time on several Nebraska pits in the past week and saw male largemouth bass swimming around guarding newly-hatched fry. Also saw larger females on the prowl looking for something to eat!

Some comments about largemouth bass spawning behavior: Male bass build the “nests” and then guard the eggs and fry. The spawn is hard on all fish and even though female largemouths may not spend a lot of time on the nest, they still take a beating and it is not at all unusual to see them with abraded tails. The females do not do much, if any nest-building or guarding, but they still get injuries and abrasions from the act of depositing eggs.

I would guess from the looks of that fish, she might be relatively old. The older they get the harder the spawn can be on them and the longer it can take for them to recover.

Daryl Bauer
Fisheries Outreach Program Manager
Nebraska Game & Parks Commission
[email protected]
Bauer’s Barbs and Backlashes

Good stuff Daryl, thanks!

She’s back swimming, and I’m thinking that pit doesn’t get much pressure, so hopefully she’ll recover quickly. Sure didn’t seemed stressed much, judging by the fight she gave me. It only fed my addiction more!

Daryl, how long will the males guard the fry? I was out yesterday and saw males hanging around clouds of fry. Most were tough to get to bite, but tempted a few with a gulp sinking minnow.

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Daryl, how long will the males guard the fry? I was out yesterday and saw males hanging around clouds of fry. Most were tough to get to bite, but tempted a few with a gulp sinking minnow.

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As the fry grow they just start to disperse. So, over time there are less and less fry for the male to guard and eventually they all just go their way. They will usually guard the fry for couple of weeks or so, but I would hate to put an exact time on it.

Daryl B.