View Full Version : City Lake Spotted Bass 6/21/11
stressD
06-25-2011, 01:00 AM
I stopped by the local lake after work Tuesday and tried by luck for a couple of hours and managed to hook into a nice spotted bass. I thought it was a pretty bass with dark coloration so decided to share a couple of pics. Used 4 1/2" curly tail roboworm split shot rigged. May not look it but felt like 4lb+.
http://fishingnetwork.net/forum4/attachment.php?attachmentid=31365&d=1308988200
http://fishingnetwork.net/forum4/attachment.php?attachmentid=31363&d=1308988157
Ifishtoolittle
06-25-2011, 01:03 AM
Nice Job! Any pics?
stressD
06-25-2011, 01:15 AM
sorry had the album set on private view.
Ifishtoolittle
06-25-2011, 01:20 AM
I don't think it's a Spotty. It just seems like a very heavily colored LMB, but in any case it's still a nice fish.
stressD
06-25-2011, 01:49 AM
i'm no expert but this bass had a small mouth so i thought it was a spotted. maybe i was wrong.
fishmounter
06-26-2011, 12:38 AM
Did you happen to notice if it had sharp little teeth on it's tongue? If it did it was a Spotted Bass or a Spotted/Largemouth hybrid. It does have a rather small mouth. You probably don't want to say, what lake/park was it caught from?
Yes, that is a nice pretty looking fish. It does resemble a spotted bass, but could be a pig largemouth with overgrown body and small head ( and heavy markings ).
If it 's a spotted bass then that would be the catch of a lifetime at a park lake. Nice fish regardless.
BTW, digging that beautiful Pflueger. Thought I was the only one considering buying it.
cutbait
06-26-2011, 10:35 AM
Its a LMB..
Super nice catch bro
cutbait
06-26-2011, 10:37 AM
For future reference, when its mouth is closed the lip will extend past the eye on lmb. Will not reach the eye on a spot
stressD
06-26-2011, 07:41 PM
didn't get a picture with it's mouth closed but the mouth did not extend beyond the eye, if i'm remembering correctly. after posting this thread i did some research online and this bass definitely has some characteristics of a spotted. the smaller scaling in the head area around the gills and eyes, the spotting, and small mouth. Unfortunately i didn't get a good look at the tongues to see if it had a tooth patch.
stressD
06-26-2011, 07:43 PM
Yes, that is a nice pretty looking fish. It does resemble a spotted bass, but could be a pig largemouth with overgrown body and small head ( and heavy markings ).
If it 's a spotted bass then that would be the catch of a lifetime at a park lake. Nice fish regardless.
BTW, digging that beautiful Pflueger. Thought I was the only one considering buying it.
thanks and you should definitely considering picking one up. it's a great reel, smooth and very light.
DarkShadow
06-27-2011, 10:05 AM
Nice largie there.
The lack of the forked tail should be a dead giveaway that it's not a Spot.
Surfer
06-27-2011, 12:54 PM
How come there isn't more lakes with spotted bass in SoCal? Can't they survive here? I know that Perris had a good population a while back but now they are all but almost gone there too.
DarkShadow
06-27-2011, 12:58 PM
How come there isn't more lakes with spotted bass in SoCal? Can't they survive here? I know that Perris had a good population a while back but now they are all but almost gone there too.
That's a good questions, as the reservoirs that exist in SoCal would be ideal, because the Spots tend to manage better in drawdown situations, better than largemouth, IMO. Since the fact they spawn a tad deeper, water draw downs during the spring may not be that detrimental.
SoCal water temps may not support spotties. Plus, because of the fact our lakes lack any type of forage other than threadfin, the spots don't tend to grow very much, and we're left with a stunted population like the ones in Central Cali, where a 5 fish, 7 pound limit, may win you a tournament.
In the South, these things gorge on gizzard shad and you should see some of the HUGE spots that come outta these lakes. You'd have to travel way north to get anything similar to that type of quality here.
DFG would have a better answer as far as the biology of the spot and why they haven't taken a foot hold in SoCal, and why they'd rather have largemouth in our bodies of water.
Ifishtoolittle
06-27-2011, 02:28 PM
Plus, because of the fact our lakes lack any type of forage other than threadfin, the spots don't tend to grow very much, and we're left with a stunted population like the ones in Central Cali, where a 5 fish, 7 pound limit, may win you a tournament.
\.
Well it's not fair to say that Socal lakes only have threadfin as a primary source of forage. At the wood and DLV there are silversides. Also Green Sunfish and other types of smaller fish are very abundant in socal lakes. And lets not forget crawdads those guys are everywhere.