In electrofishing samples in a Res in west central KS we very frequently rolled bass with tails present extending from their mouths.
A prey of 1/5 the length would not be visible when swallowed. We had many bass with Gizzard shad with tails exposed. The most memorable was 1 of 22" that we extracted a 12.75" Shad from.
In gill nets we've had bluegill/crappie trapped in nets and Largemouth literally swallow the fish and be stuck until we run nets.
I'm no expert but I'd say when considering Bluegill as the main forage, 4" would be about what a 17-18" LMB would take, no problem. When you start getting into larger bluegill for larger bass you loose some return efficiency because gape size limits the seemingly "taller" BG that length is just not present for that size of fish. If Shad were present, the same LMB that can eat a max of 5" bluegill would probably be able to utilize a 12-13" shad or similar sized fish body shape wise.
It all comes to a head when you consider the effects of stocking shad and the higher potential for problems.
Dr. Luke's example of 35% may be spot-on as the Max size for Bluegill. If other species are present, that could very easily go to near 50% for some forage types.
Last edited by Snipe; 12/04/18 01:59 PM.
