Shellcrackers spawning....and bass...and bluegills, all in the same lake!

[oldfella1962]

Wow I am learning a lot this year. Where I fish (six acres or so pond/lake) the bluegills are spawning on the northeast shore, the shellcrackers are spawning on the southern shore, and the bass are still spawning (males on beds, females full of eggs) near the other two species I mentioned just slightly deeper. It sounds crazy until I thought about it - it's all about water temperature and a suitable lake bottom for their beds.

This is a clear lake that gets deep very quickly. It's a bank-fishing dream lake. It has big trees right up to the bank, so some spots are shady and take longer to warm up, so there can a wide variety of water temperatures all over the lake on any given calendar date. Yes, I am smart enough to document the spots and the dates for next year. But I am definitely doing quite well this year and am having a blast! I'm trying for a personal best shellcracker tomorrow - that's my goal anyway.

 

[fishfryer]

Sounds like a good lesson plan

 

[oldfella1962]

Sounds like a good lesson plan

I was too hung up on "when" shellcrackers would be spawning rather than "why" they would be spawning, which is water temperature. A couple of weeks ago I figure I missed the boat since the bluegills were just starting to spawn and "the experts" say shellcrackers spawn before the bluegills spawn but after the bass spawn. Now I see that's a general "rule of thumb" which can vary depending on the body of water. The bass have been spawning since early March on this lake, in the very shallow sunny areas. Now the rest of the bass are on the beds in over six feet deep water because that water has finally warmed up.

That could be why using a drop-shot rig is so consistently effective for me lately on days when I'm targeting bass. That worm is always a few inches above the lake bottom weeds and right in front of a bass's face and moving enticingly slow during the entire retrieve. A bass on a bed can't resist grabbing it to remove the threat, and a hungry not spawning bass just wants to eat it.

Anyway the shellcrackers have just started spawning like three or four days ago so I'll be going after them unless somebody walking the bank spots them on the beds and fishes them out.