Anyone seeing any beds yet on Guntersville? I know usually the first full moon in May, but thought some may start early. Also dont shellcrackers bed earlier than bream? Thanks!
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Anyone seeing any beds yet on Guntersville? I know usually the first full moon in May, but thought some may start early. Also dont shellcrackers bed earlier than bream? Thanks!
I was on the lake a while yesterday and did not see any signs of bream bedding. It seems that the crappie are way behind schedule and I don't see any reason that the bream would be ahead because of the cold spell we had. I fished over some areas where they were already staging by this time last year, but only caught one bluegill.
Thanks for the response! I've missed them the past few years so want to be ready :biggrin
Stoped by cabin yesterday at martin was talking with neighbor who said he had gills bedding of his dock .Getting close
Seems like everything has been earlier on the Coosa than Gville this year.
Was on a bed of shellcrackers last week on the Big G.
i was catching good gills and a few crackers in Bear Creek (pickwick) last weekend while trolling for crappie. They were popping our jigs big time evertime we came over a paticular spot.
I struggled last year, but I think I was too late. I was in the Roseberry area yesterday and just couldn't find them.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob D
I was on the bottom end of the lake in Brown's creek area
Anyone finding them yet?
Have caught lots of shell cracker over last 2 weeks seems to be hit or miss evening being better most have been caught on the bottom in 4fow. Red worms mostly
thanks for the info. Love those shellcrackers!!
I posted about a trip I had Tuesday in the bream forum. I caught them in a foot of water you could see them actually take the bait.
I caught a lot but they were not actually on bed. I caught some huge ones last year but it was towards the end of may.
On May 7, this is what I saw in a cove near the mid section of Guntersville Lake.Attachment 202270Quote:
Originally Posted by Croppie
Now, if you were to find this on the lake, how would you fish it? I did not see any bream on the beds. We caught about 30 shellcracker and bluegills. They were all nice big ones. This was a rather large bed with close to 100 individual nests...all clean and nice.
I am really interested in hearing from all of you as to what is going on here.
There on beds on Wilson Lake
Tadpole, do you happen to have a daughter named Amy?
I have watched several hundred beds before they we're cleaned and go back 4-5 days later and they be cleaned with only a few fish around but have yet to figure them out .do they do they lay and be gone that quick?
I was wading and catching Shellcrackers and notice they would expand their gills to make theme look bigger when another fish would approach the beds.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tadpole!!
No, not me.Quote:
Originally Posted by Croppie
If you are asking why you found the beds but there were no bedding fish on them although they look brand new ,its one or 2 things.One you found them too late and they have come off already or secondly and most likely you werent the first one to find the bed and they were cleaned out by one of those"I caught 50 gills and Shell Crackers guys already..........sort of like the you should have been here last week stories! No new fish take over a bed ,once the guard male is caught its over for that bed.Smaller fish will come in and eat the eggs and fry with no resistance. Remember where you found the bed and start looking in that area again next year earlier as they tend to bed close to or on top of where they did the year before. They need the sandy small gravelly bottom.Unfortunately On Gville a lot of the old bedding areas have silted in from all the grass die offs over the years and its left a lot of the old bedding areas with about 2 ft of muck and no sand..Crackers will use the hole in weeds to nest easier than a gill will and it might not be as sandy.
I killed the shellcracker on beds the last two days. I am not so sure a bed is only used by one male one time. I have no idea but it seems strange I can catch so many in such a small circle. Sometimes I can catch them for several days consistently over just a very small bedding area.
Seems they get turned on by the activity. Even fish that have already spawned and move off their bed will still be in the area for several days. Today there were a few males still guarding beds, but gangs of other gills were swimming around just outside the area with the beds. There were also several large bass on the edge waiting. At least one gill fell prey to one of those bass.
Ditch those bass love to ambush those gills. I have seen several 8 to 10 pound range bass trying to ambush them. I have even had them try to take ones I have caught, they will try and grab it as I am reeling one in.
crappieseeker,
Yep. that used to be one of my favorite patterns when I chased bass. There were always a few just out of sight towards the deep water off gills beds. A plastic worm or a jig and pig would always get a nice one or two. I didn't see any truly huge bass, but there was a convention of 4 and 5 pounders.