The black bass loves rather warm, not too shallow water with hiding places in
form of weeds or other structure. It doesn't have to be all too clear but he
doesn't like currents at all. You will find them in lot's of waters in southern
Europe and north Africa. South of the Alps and Pyrenees there are some quite a
good populations. In
(southern) Europe we usually find the largemouth, in America, home of the black
bass, you will also encounter the smallmouth which likes cooler water, tolerates
a stronger current and doesn't grow as big. In spite of their names, both fish
have rather large mouths.
Behaviour
The black bass behaves somewhat like a mixture between pike and perch. It
will lie on ambush like a pike in places like sunk trees, docks, overhanging
trees and weed edges. But you will also see them roaming around in small groups
feeding on baitfish. It's very aggressive fish and can be very tempted by lures
which make a lot of noise on the surface.
On the other hand you'll easily find them as far down as 12 meter.
Fishing
When you're fishing for black bass your best bet is to try all kinds of
potential hideouts, searching for the fish.
But keep in mind, that quite often there will be several fish in, for instance,
a submerged tree and once you find fish you should fish the area more thorough
than you would when you're after pike. This is especially true when you expect a
dense population and when you're using soft bait.
The black bass puts up a spectacular fight once it's hooked and often jumps out
of the water.
Lures
Surface lures (Popper,
Devil's Horse, Skitter
Prop) are the most fun to use, when the fish take them, which is often the
case. If not during the day, they will probably take them at dusk. These lures
should be fished quite slowly with small jerks and pauses. You should always
wait with your hookset, until you feel the fish in the rod. Under no
circumstances should you try to set the hook immediately after the often quite
noisy bite. Surface lures are best in places where something is above the
surface of the water. Fish as close as you dare to the structure. Soft bait (worms,
crayfish,
jerkbaits,
grubs) are often successful, when surface lures aren't. They are also best
fished slowly. When you fish from the boat towards a steep shore line all you
have to do is twitch the lure now and then to make it fall down slowly as close
to the ground as possible.
The classic jig heads are not often used, instead you'll use the American rigs
like the Carolina Rig or Texas rig. A good scent, impregnated directly in the
lure or applied afterwards, makes setting the hook easier, because the fish
won't spit it so fast. Plugs ( Shad Rap, Fat
Rap, Big-S ) especially the rounder swimming models can be fished like surface
lures, with pauses to allow them to come back to the surface. They can also be
cranked normally especially near sunken hideouts. They are also useful for
trolling near bluffs, over weed beds and other places where it's not so easy
to precisely locate the fish. Spinners ( Aglia Long, Comet
) are not so typical lures for bass, but can be very successful when they
are actively feeding. Spinnerbaits are quite popular in America but my success
with them has been quite limited so far.
Tackle
When you're fishing for black bass you'll be well off with
medium tackle, choosing a stiffer
rod for soft lures and a softer one for the the other lures. Because you'll
often fish close to obstacles you'll have to fight hard and your line should be
rather strong. When the water is clear and no pike are around a fluorocarbon
leader has proven to be very good.
