The April full moon is next week. We have tons of male BG making beds. RES are on beds also. April and May full moons are generally our 2 biggest spawns. There are also a bunch of 1/8 to 1/4 inch and 1/2 inch BG yoy from early spawns this year.

What are you guys seeing ? Reports.

Here in VA, the bass will peak on this full moon and the BG will peak next full moon in May. Water temps are in the low to mid 60's here.

What I see in Indiana mirrors what Travis sees in VA.

Most of my male BG were making beds yesterday but that heavy rain we had last night pushed them off. Im sure they will be back on beds tommorow. I tried to fish for bass yesterday but the BG were hitting everything I threw. I noticed today that I have few schools of Bass fry swimming around the edges and Tshad were also up in the shallows laying spawning. Water temps are still at 68-70 deg.

Eric,

Has any research definitively without any doubts shown a peak in bluegill bedding during a full moon? The only reason I ask this is way back when I was studying fisheries the thought was there may be a link but it hadn't been proven definitively with any studies. Not questioning it just asking if anyone has done a definitive research study on this.

Had a ton of beds pop up literally over night; Nothing on them but the pond now looks like the
moon.

Is it common for them to build their beds, and then come back to them later and not sit right away?

Had a ton of beds pop up literally over night; Nothing on them but the pond now looks like the
moon.

Is it common for them to build their beds, and then come back to them later and not sit right away?


Not unusual if there was a sudden drop in temperature or a two legged predator with a fishing pole came in and removed them without your knowledge.

BG making beds in the shallow end of the pond making water muddy at that end. I have had a Bass at the SW corner of the pond sitting a bed a couple weeks now. He made it in about a foot of water. I will try to get a pic of him.

Last night at work I took a walk around one of the lakes in my patrol area. There is a boat launch dock and fishing pier you can walk on. I was shining my flashlight into the water and was amazed at all the crayfish this spring. I also saw the first BG's on their spawning beds. They were busy duking it out with white perch... I am guessing the white perch were doing some serious egg stealing. Also saw a HUGE musky in the lights of the pier. He let me get within a few feet before zooming off into the dark. He was well over 40".

My water's too murky to find the beds. Guess I'll have to get a fish finder.

BG aren't biting at all ATM. Went yesterday and only caught 2 large females
(with flabby bellies) on the day, obviously already spawned.

quote CJ: "I was shining my flashlight into the water"

Did you discover clues to the perpetrator of the crime?

Sorry, I'm weak.

No crime last night at the lake. My 30 minutes walking around the lake was about the only free time I had to myself otherwise. Warm weekend and an almost full moon brought the nuts out.

While feeding the fish tonight I noticed 1 bass that was constantly circling under the dock and charging every HBG that got close to the dock. He wasn't eating pellets and at first I thought he was tring to eat the HBG but he was just swimming at a medium speed and randomly swiping at any fish in the area with mouth agape. It was entertaining to watch and eventually I realized what was going on. I layed down on the dock to look underneath and confirmed my suspicions. A school of bass fry was there and Papa was playing the sheepdog role.

Ok those are nice pics at the top.

How deep is the water those beds are in?

What is the water temp?

Did you add the rocks or gravel to the pond?


So how big or old to BG have to be to spawn?

Can you tell the difference in the BG or RE when they are on the beds?

Anything to help them spawn easier?

Top pic is a descending point that has beds going from about 6 inches to about 6 feet. The beds have had about a double handful of gravel added to most beds.

Second pic is a sand beach about 12-18 inches deep with some very small gravel in the sand. Water temp was in low 70s when the fish spawned.

So how long does it take your initial stocking to spawn?


I know that Bluegill can spawn more than once per year, when will they usally stop spawning?