Ask The Pros
Weather Q. and A.
Shallow Fish in the Fall?
Q. Is it true bass move into the shallow waters to feed, To prepare themselves for winter?
Tina
A. Yes, it is true that bass generally move to the shallows in the fall of the year (the exact timeframe will be dependant upon your particular part of the country) when the water temperatures start to cool and the lunar phases tell them that winter is around the corner. They do this because in the winter months their metabolism slows with the cooler water and they feed more infrequently. There is also a reduction in their natural forage. They need to “fatten up” for the winter. For bass fishermen this is one of the prime times to catch that trophy bass.
Scott Hammer
Mid-Atlantic Pro
A. There are catchable bass shallow 364 days a year. In the fall bass will migrate towards the backs of creeks to gorge themselves on shad, then as the water gets colder the fish and the shad will move back into the main lake areas for the majority of the winter. Now that doesn’t mean you can’t catch fish in the creeks shallow because you can. Bass will also be shallow in the middle of the winter sunning themselves on rock shorelines.
Bass are like humans; when we get cold we turn on the heat. When a bass gets cold it gravitates to thermal refuges like shallow water that warms faster than deeper water. Rocks conduct heat and also make the surrounding water a degree or 2 warmer than the main channel water which in turn make rip raps a great place to fish during the winter time of the year.
Mike Bucca
Southern Pro