With the huge selection of artificial lures available to the bass angler, including crankbaits, stickbaits, soft plastic worms, spinnerbaits and top-water lures, finding the right lure can prove challenging. Some forethought, however, can help you narrow your choices. Water temperature and clarity, structure within the body of water you are fishing, time of day and other factors can help you determine which lures will be more likely to work for the prevailing conditions.
Fishing Conditions
Consider the conditions you are fishing. Snaggy areas, such as weed beds or sunken trees, may require a weedless hook setup, as with a soft plastic worm rigged Texas-style. Rocky areas or sunken tree trunks may be good for bouncing a crankbait over. In more open areas, with less cover, a lure that has flash and vibrates, such as a spinnerbait, can help draw out lurking bass.
Color Selection
When selecting a lure, also take into consideration the water conditions you are fishing. In clearer waters, darker and less flashy lures, colored blue, purple or black, tend to work well, while murky, low-visibility conditions may warrant a brighter color lure choice, such as white, orange, yellow or chartreuse.
Depth
Bass tend to move from shallow to deep water and back again, depending on the water temperature and time of day. When selecting a lure, take these factors into consideration. For example, winter bass will be more likely to head for deep water, where a deep-diving lure will reach. Warmer weather brings bass to more shallow areas, where a shallow diver, swim bait or top-water lure will work better. A fish finder can also help identify how deep bass are holding and narrow your lure selection.
Available Prey
Bass are opportunistic feeders and will take the most abundant and easiest prey they can find. Adjust your lure selection to align with the prey that bass are most likely to favor. For example, in lakes or reservoirs where minnows are available in large numbers, use a stickbait that resembles these slender baitfish. For areas that have high crayfish populations, use a lure that mimics these tiny crustaceans.
Multiple Lures
When bass fishing, sometimes all the planning and calculating in the world can't predict how these elusive fish will react to your choice of lure. With this in mind, keep several different lures in your tackle box, just in case your first selection doesn't do the trick.
References
- The Ultimate Bass Fishing Resource Guide: Understanding What's on the Menu
- Reel Fishing Reports: Selecting Lures & Baits for Largemouth Bass
- Iowa Department of Natural Resources: Fishing for Smallmouth Bass
- The Ultimate Bass Fishing Resource Guide: Color Perception
- New York State Department of Environmental Conservation: Fishing Basics Black Bass
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