Small Mouth Bass
Introduction
The smallmouth bass (micropterus dolomieui) is a popular North American game fish, well known both for its fighting ability and table fare. Despite their name, Smallmouth Bass are not actually Bass, but rather a member of the sunfish family and they originally came from the Eastern United States and Canada.
Smallmouth bass are known to be tenacious and full of energy, which is why many anglers consider them to be a top fighter and excellent game fish. A smallmouth rarely submits when hooked, and often succeeds in shaking the lure from its mouth by jumping and twisting into the air. When caught in the depths, a smallmouth burrows into the nearest weed bed or cover, making the angler work to land the fish.
The smallmouth bass is generally brown (seldom yellow) with red eyes,and dark brown vertical bands, rather than a horizontal band along the side. There are 13-15 soft rays in the dorsal fin. The upper jaw of smallmouth bass extends to the middle of the eye.
Males are generally smaller than females. The males tend to range around two pounds while females can range from three to six pounds. Their average sizes can differ, depending on where they are found.
Their habitat plays a significant role in their color, weight, and shape.
River water smallmouth that live among dark water tend to be rather torpedo shaped and very dark brown in order to be more efficient for feeding.
Lakeside smallmouth bass however, that live for example in sandy areas, tend to be a light yellow brown to adapt to the environment in a defensive state and are more oval shaped.
Life Cycle
Typically spawn in March-May when water temperatures reach between 59 and 64 degrees. Males build nests, usually within 150 yards of where the nest was the previous year.
Male smallmouths clear a nest of almost three feet in diameter at a depth of four to twenty feet. When the male is finished scraping away the gravelly bottom, he leads up to six females to the nest. Each female deposits her eggs in the same nest. Many of the eggs each female produces are not fertile, and the average nest contains around two thousand fertile eggs.
After the female lays her eggs, she lies on her side at the bottom of the lake. While recuperating after the spawn, some females excrete a white, creamy substance that envelops their entire body. Some old and weak fish die after the spawn, but most recover their strength after a week recuperation period.
The male guards the nest for three to ten days depending on water temperature, after which the eggs hatch and tiny black fry with bright yellow eyes emerge. The males rest for about a week, and do not feed during this recovery period.
Females reach sexual maturity at three years whereas males don't until four years of age. It can take up to ten years for Smallmouth to reach a length of about twenty inches and a weight of five or six pounds. Some smallmouths live up to fifteen years.
The rate of maturation is directly dependant on the body of water. Very clear lakes that contain diverse ecosystems and rocky bottoms will hold fish that mature faster, and reach larger sizes. Most smallmouths weigh less than five pounds.
Behavior
In winter months, when water temperatures reach below 50ºF, the bass lie on the bottom of the lake at depths of thirty to forty feet.
At about 55ºF, the fish school together at about ten or twenty feet deep, preparing for the spring spawn. When temperatures rise to the low sixties - anytime from April to June, depending on the location - spawning begins.
Smallmouths feed when water temperatures are between 50°F and 80°F. In the fall, smallmouths move to depths of fifteen to twenty feet, pursuing schools of small forage fish. Smallmouths may also school together, especially in the larger lakes.
Where to Find Them
Smallmouth are found in clearer water than the largemouth, especially streams, rivers, and the rocky areas and stumps and also sandy bottoms of lakes and reservoirs.
The smallmouth prefers cooler water temperatures than its cousin the largemouth bass, and may be found in both still and moving water. Because it is intolerant of pollution, the smallmouth bass is a good natural indicator of a healthy environment, though it can better adjust to changes in water condition than most trout species.
Idaho's more popular smallmouth bass waters include Hayden Lake in the Panhandle Region; Dworshak Reservoir in the Clearwater Region; Oxbow, Brownlee, and C.J. Strike reservoirs in the Southwest Region; Milner and Minidoka reservoirs in the Magic Valley Region; and American Falls Reservoir in the Southeast Region.
Spring Fishing Techniques
Spring fishing is the easiest time to land smallmouth bass. The fish begin to move into the two to ten feet deep shallows, and feed on spawning crawfish. Though actively feeding around fallen debris, boat docks, and rocky shorelines, the fish are suspicious of lures at this time of the season.
By trolling a well-presented crank bait, on a line sixty yards long over the shallows, anglers may intercept fish that return from deep water to the shallows after the boat passes overhead. Outboard motors tend to spook the fish, so when casting, it is best to drift or paddle quietly. Some anglers prefer to cast long distances with ultra-light spinning equipment and use light lures such as a small floating-diving crank baits. If the fish are uninterested, try spinners or even small spoons. Polarized sunglasses may help anglers perceive the outlines of fish and submerged weed beds, enabling the angler to cast to the fish.
Another successful shallow-water tactic, particularly at dawn and dusk, includes using a fly rod and floating deer-hair bugs. Experiment with a nine-and-a-half-foot or longer leader, tapered to a four-pound test tippet. Carefully place the bug against the shore among the fallen trees and foliage, and expect a strike as the bug hits the surface.
When fishing in rocky waters five to fifteen feet deep, try ultra-light spinning tackle and a one-eighth-ounce yellow jig with a piece of night crawler at its tip. Cast the jig over the rocky area, slowly hopping the lure along the bottom. The lure imitates the motion of a crawfish or leech, and quickly attracts the attention of smallmouths.
Feeding slows before the spring spawn. While males in shallow water and females schooled off rocky points can be caught with slow jigs and crank baits., the fish are very vulnerable just before spawning. Greedy anglers can greatly harm the smallmouth population, and all fishing at this time should be limited to catch and release. During the spawn, and a week or so after spawning occurs, knowledgeable anglers stop their smallmouth fishing. By removing the male from his lookout, crawfish, fish, and newts will quickly consume the unguarded eggs.
Summer Fishing Techniques
In summer, smallmouths change depths often, frequenting rocky-island waters from fifteen to thirty feet deep to shallow flats. Smallmouths move feeding locations many times during the day, often lured into the depths by schools of small fish or found grazing the rocky shallows for crawfish.
Artificial worms and small split-tail plastic grubs are standard smallmouth lures. Weight the lures and retrieve them with little hops along the bottom. When fish are following artificial lures, but hesitant to strike, try crawfish, minnows, hellgrammites, or night crawlers.
A popular summer bait fish is a small live crawfish hooked near the end of its tail, or a shiner hooked through both lips. Use a No. 4 or No.6 hook attached directly to the line, with a light split shot weighted to bring the bait to the bottom. Work the shiner slowly. Retrieve the crawfish at a slightly faster, hopping pace, to prevent the crawfish from burrowing under rocks.
Try top-water fishing at dawn or dusk at any location where smallmouths are found during the day. Experiment with long, slender floater-divers and larger lures cast off rocky points in water thirty or more feet deep. Smallmouths produce spectacular twists and jumps the second the lure hits the surface or moments after the lure lies motionless.
Fall Fishing Techniques
In the cooler fall waters, smallmouths may be hard to find. They school into deeper waters, anywhere from twenty to forty feet deep, to feed on the crawfish and smaller fishes that have also moved into deeper areas.
Most fish are found at the deepest drop-offs near their feeding grounds. When a school is found, try back-trolling using a green or gray quarter-ounce jig with an artificial grub, jigging bait, or small spoon. Barely move the jig when fishing in cold waters; sometimes the fish only strike motionless bait that is barely suspended from the bottom.
At depths of up to forty feet, use light bait casting equipment, a graphite or boron rod, and an eight-pound test line for the best control and response.
Deep Water Fishing Techniques
Most bass are caught in shallower waters from four to twenty feet deep. Smallmouth in deeper lakes, however, will tend to move towards deeper, cooler water.
Trolling for deep-water smallmouths is time well spent. A depth finder is useful to locate structure, but not necessary. Anglers heavier outfits - reels, rods and line up to thirty pounds, and larger deep-diving crank baits, and lures resembling small rainbow trout.
When trolling for deep-water bass, there may be over 100 yards of line between the rod and the lure. Tension between the rod and the lure is weak. Some anglers prefer to maintain a hold on the rod, rather than using a holder, in case they miss subtle strikes.
River Fishing Techniques
Smallmouth bass love fast water and are usually found below dams and power-generating stations. Schools of smallmouths frequently corner schools of smaller fish against the power-generating obstruction. A small top-water spoon or crank bait thrown among the leaping minnows works well to catch a smallmouth, or a try a heavier jig targeting larger fish beneath the skirmish.
Look for turns in rivers and streams where deep underwater ledges produce a slick calm on the water's surface. Fish the calm depths with small orange, brown, or dull yellow jig with a piece of night crawler or crawfish at the lure's tip. At the mouths of streams or at the edges of large channels, use light spinning tackle and six-pound test line while slowly back-trolling with a jig-and-shiner arrangement or trolling a small crank bait upstream.
In smaller streams and rivers, smallmouths and trout can be found around obvious rocks, under hanging rocks and ledges, and in shallow pools. In small streams, some anglers fish with a fly rod and a weighted Muddler Minnow or small streamer or buck tail. Fish spinning lures slowly, letting the lures hang in the fast flowing waters around protruding rocks and ledges. Live crawfish, minnows, and hellgrammites are effective when fished at the bottom and below the first riffles of the deepest pools. For this type of small-stream fishing, use light spinning tackle, a No.6 hook, and a small split shot In these conditions, anglers often catch both trout and smallmouths.
Where a fast current has smoothed the river bottom, cast a spoon lure directly upstream and allow the spoon to settle to the bottom. The fast waters smooth the rocks that would normally pose a snagging risk, and smallmouths like to rest on the smooth bottom, ready to strike. Fish fast, deep runs through rock layers or ledges in the same manner. Cast directly upstream with a small spoon, permitting the lure to settle to the bottom. This tactic often results in the capture of smallmouths and walleyes.
When the temperatures begin to drop in the fall, smallmouths begin to school near rock shelves near deeper water or near cover at the edges of deep drops. Anglers use the same tactics for fall lake fishing - a live crawfish or a slowly retrieved minnow.
Lures & Bait
LURES: In conventional fishing, smallmouth may be successfully caught on a wide range of natural and artificial baits or lures, including crankbaits, hair jigs, plastic jerkbaits (such as Rapala Husky Jerks, Rapala X-Raps, or even a Rico Popper), spinnerbaits, and all types of soft plastic lures including curly tail grubs or tubes with lead head jigs. They may also be caught with a fly rod using a dry or wet fly, nymphs, streamers, or imitations of larger aquatic creatures such as crawfish or leeches (see Artificial fly). Floating topwater popper fly patterns and buzz baits are also popular for smallmouth fishing.
BAIT: Smallmouth bass anglers may also use live bait to catch fish. Live nightcrawlers, minnows, crayfish, and leeches are the most productive live baits.