Good Tactics for Bad Spotted Bass
The
Creation of the Bad Spotted Bass
Editor’s Note: “We can catch and release
100 spotted bass a day,” Nolen Shivers of Birmingham,
Alabama, said about a midweek fishing trip to Lay Lake
in central Alabama. Shivers is one of the best anglers
in that area and perhaps even in the nation. Unlike
others, he hasn’t been infected with the lying
disease often found in fishermen. But catching 100 spotted
bass in one day was more than most people’s minds
could fathom. However, Shivers was as good as his word.
The
spotted bass were ganged-up on rocky main-river points
all along the lake. On almost ever cast with chartreuse
Diamond Flash grubs, we’d catch spots weighing
between ¾-pound and 4 pounds. The spotted bass
fishing was so fast, furious and productive that catching
the spots almost became boring, except for the viciousness
with which these marauders of the rocks fought. If you’ve
wondered why this species of bass is much more fierce
fighters than either the largemouth or the smallmouth,
perhaps it’s because they often feed in current,
which accounts for the savageness of their strikes and
the strength with which they tear the line off reels.
Some anglers tell the story that when the Almighty
sat on His throne and
decided where to put the fishes in the world, He told
the spotted bass, “Boy, I don’t know what
I’m going to do with you. All you want to do is
fight! Anytime I put you around any other species of
fish, you just want to whip them. You’ve got to
be the meanest little critter I’ve ever seen.”
The small spotted bass just bowed his back, lowered
his head and said, “Well, Lord, when You created
the largemouth bass, You made him the biggest bass of
all. And when You made the smallmouth, You allowed him
to be the high jumper of the water. You know what show-offs
they both are. When I came along, there wasn’t
anything left for me to be. The only way I could get
any attention on the waterways of the earth was to be
the baddest bass that swam. When a fight’s involved,
the largemouth and the smallmouth bass usually outweigh
me. Since You are probably not willing to change them,
I feel in all fairness you should give me another weapon.”
From His pearly throne, the Lord realized that the
little spotted bass had made a valid point. Because
the smallmouth and the largemouth were content with
the attributes they had received, the Lord wanted to
be just and fair and give the spot a little something
extra.
“O.k., little spot,” the Almighty answered.
“If being a fighter is your choice, I’ll
equip you better than the other fish for the tussles
you will encounter. I will make your body lean and strong.
I also will add teeth to your tongue to let the world
know you are the baddest bass that swims. If you happen
to fall prey to anglers, I’ll give you more power
to fight, pound for pound, than the other two bass.
If being bad is your choice, I’ll equip you to
be the baddest bass around.” And with that declaration,
the Almighty created one of the most-sporting bass that
swims.
Tomorrow: Spotting the Spotted
Bass
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