The largemouth bass have the best recruitment success laying eggs in water temps between 62-67 degrees during a warming trend. When the water gets into the 70's the depth the LMB spawn bluegill are spawning in the same areas and bass egg survival rate drop dramatically. Water in 58-60 degree temps are when both Smallmouth and Spotted bass prefer to spawn, one reason you don"t see Smallmouth or Spotted hybrids with LMB and will have Smallmouth and Spotted bass hybrids.

If the water remains too cold, the bass egg development slows down, cold blood animal everything slows down, if the water doesn't warm up enough the eggs revert and consumed inside the females egg sacks or they abort the eggs resulting in a low recruitment year cycle.

Normal weather years native plants, trees and water all all warm with the longer day light, it goes hand in hand. Very cold years like this the spawn will be later then normal because the water is colder.

In SoCal the only native trees are Oakes, Sycamore and pine, aspen at higher altitudes. We have trees and plants from all corners of the world that are not native to our areas and their time table to photoperiods are random at best, it takes centuries for the plants to adjust to a new zone. For example my crape myrtle tree bloom s March one year and June the next and same with most imported plants or trees. All our fresh water bass are transplants adjusting to a new* environment.

* Smallmouth & NLMB, -1890's, FLMB - 1960's, Spotted bass-1940's, a blink of time for change in animals or plants to adjust.

Tom

bumble bees

At the latitude of the US/Canada border, the first brood of red-winged blackbirds

coincides perfectly with the pre-spawn peak of largemouth bass.

 

I learned this association by accident, getting dive-bombed nonstop by blackbirds when inadvertently

approaching an active nest. They artfully weave their nest among cattail stalks, a beautiful sight

when filled with their light-blue speckled eggs. Bass could not be kept however,

because the Ontario bass season didn't open until the late pre-spawn (may be different today).

 

Roger