Been feeling a little under the weather the last few days. I got to spend a little time on the pond this evening before the wife called me to eat. I managed two small bass,two big bream and a smaller bream. I've decided to get serious with my fly rod this year. I realize I can catch more fish even though smaller they are a blast on a 5 wt fly rod plus I can carry all my lures in my breast pocket. Started tying my own bugs and spiders. I caught all these on the same little spider. When I walked down to the pond this evening there was two geese and they went into the water and swam to the other end of the pond. A large bass,looked to be 18"-20" long followed them across the pond just under the surface. I guess he was trying to figure out whether he could get one in his mouth. I sure would have liked to tease him a little but I didn't have my fly rod rigged at the time. <br />
...... how many acre , how deep , spillway ?? , what types of fish in there , any toothy fish in there , what was the water temp. , how was the water - clear or any murk ??
I don't fly rod but tying your own bugs has always sounded neat to me .
We were out again last week , the water was low and crystal clear on the Susquehanna , the sky was bright blue not a cloud to be seen , water temp. hit 57F. ... it was like being in an aquarium . Saw a number of full size Muskies , Walleye , channel Cats , Smallmouth , big ol Carp , river turtles walking on the bottom ... we took fish in the morning but they stopped cold turkey during the bright day , then back on it again just at twi-light .
I may finish the "hooked the largest Smallmouth" post with the 2nd and final chapter ... it was still there in the same place this time a week later , it was among the twi-light fish this day .
My pond is about 1-1/2 acre with bass,bream,crappie and some catfish. I fish the local reservoirs but when I want to really catch fish I fish my private pond. How lucky can one man get?
of light and angle. They are Largemouth bass. Sometimes LM bass will have a pronounced lateral stripe and sometimes not so much. Here I Googled a great explanation on bass coloration. Don't be fooled by jenella1 it's really me mickeys4. My wife was signed in when I replied.
Question: When the color of a largemouth bass is white and faded looking does that mean that he has been in shallow water or down deep. I might be wrong but I heard that when they are down deep they become light in color.
Replies: Hi
You are partly correct. Largemouth bass have photo receptors in their eyes that help them cue the changes in their pigment cells in their skin. Their eyes receive the reflected light from their surroundings and this can trigger a chemical release (hormones) in their skin to move the pigment closer to the surface of the skin or further away. This is an adaptation that allows them to camouflage themselves better when they are hunting prey or being hunted by larger fish. If they are in clear water with good vegetation/cover they usually will take on a darker color on their back, green on their sides and white on their belly. This is when they also have the beautiful green horizontal bar across their side. When they suspend out in deep water or even in shallow muddy water they will take on a more faded/bleached out appearance, it can even be a buttery color. This is because their only cover is either each other in a school or the open water. When they are in shallow clear rocky or wood cover with no vegetation they can also be more black and white. By having a more uniform color appearance in open or muddy water they are less noticeable by predators or prey.
So when you catch a fish in shallow clear water and the fish is more pale in color it did in fact most likely "come up" from deeper water or from being suspended off shore unless the water is cold and muddy. Most color changes can happen fairly quickly (less than a day.)
