Thanks ewest, that's exactly what it is! From the article "Heteropolaria thrives if there are high levels of organic matter in the water to provide nutrients. Stress, caused by poor water quality, crowding, water temperature variations, reduction in body condition, or spawning can increase the susceptibility of fish to red sore disease."
I think it's a combination of high nutrient levels from feeding, being crowded and spawning stress. It creates a perfect storm for this issue it seems like. Water quality might be a piece of that puzzle too, hopefully know more in the next few days. I'm hoping that improving the water quality helps as that is the only variable that would help my goal of bigger bass. Less fish or feeding them less would go against that goal.
