The Significance of the Shad Spawn

Many fisherman are aware that every spring the shad spawn out bringing tons of small fish for bass to feed on and it generally starts the beginning of the chasing for bass as they feed up after healing from their own spawning time. It is a big milestone in the progression of the bass fishing on your lake. The water has generally warmed into the 70’s and the bass are feeding and chasing aggressively for the first time since the spawn was over.


The biggest change and most positive change I see every year is what it means from a bait perspective. The past month or so prior to this period the bass were lethargic you generally fished slow baits like football jigs, worms, creature bait type looks keeping contact with the bottom and taunting bass with plastics. All of a sudden you can put those baits back in your tackle box and make your move to aggressive baits; swim jigs, chatter baits, spinner baits, top water baits all become a factor and catching is generally aggressive and much more fun than it was during the slower period.


It’s also important to note that the timing of the shad spawn and the time of day that you should be on the water to enjoy this period is first light in the morning or last 30 minutes of the daylight. The reason for this is as the sun rises and the shad wake up from their birth they move aggressively over and around the grassy or structured covered areas on your lake. Depending on your lake and the type of structure you normally see covering your lake depends on where the shad spawn takes place. You have to be able to identify the right area quickly for the shad spawn so you can be in the right place at the right time for the shad spawn; in other words where is it occurring on your lake is extremely important. There is only one way to find this out that is to cover the structure on your lake during this period with fast moving baits like spinner baits and look for the shad chasing your bait as you work it back to the boat. You will see them chasing your bait and you will know it is on!


Fish Lake Guntersville Guide Service
www.fishlakeguntersvilleguideservice.com
www.facebook.com/FishGuntersville
Email: bassguide@comcast.net
Call: 256 759 2270
Capt. Mike Gerry