Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Spotted bass

We've had scattered posts about spotted bass but not a thread devoted to them that I'm aware of.

Everything we say about SMB should apply to spotted bass as well. The only difference is that spotted bass are adapted to warmer waters.

The biggest problem with spotted bass is that they are lumped together with LMB when people are fishing. They don't get as large (neither do SMB) so are discounted by people that want large bass.

I should have known you would be interested in this subject:) Do you know of any hatcheries around here that may have some? Do they feed train?

I would love to get some spotted bass in my pond. If I can find some.

Here in SE I have had numerous clients put in a few from local reservoirs. In every case with vaired habitats they are the most caught bass. Cool right, well not really they also have all lost weight, they require a large diet b/c of that same metabloism that makes them easy to catch. Something like this.. caufght at 4.2 lbs, than caught again 3 lbs to 2 lbs before dying all in about 9 months or less.

NEDOC, oh yes, if they would live this far north, we would certainly get them. I look at them as a southern alternative to SMB.

Spotted bass have been illegally planted in a number of North Carolina lakes and have quickly decimated the largemouth and smallmouth populations.

CRC

That is very interesting. I've caught spotted bass in reservoirs from Middle Tennessee to Texas and didn't know they appreciably outcompeted LMB and SMB. I wonder what behavior charecteristic gives them a leg up on their cousins?

I'm not sure except I know they spawn deeper than largemouth bass and as such are not affected by predation by blueback herring and alewife herring.

In Lake Chatuge spotted bass are almost all you catch now.