Hey everyone, just was wondering what all of your favorite bed fishing baits are and what color. Are there any other tips for bed fishing to get the female to bite? 

I don't like bed fishing for largemouth too much, so I mainly restrict my bed fishing to smallmouth because they are always willing and way more aggressive. That being said..........a lot of times there will be largemouth on beds at the same time as smallmouth around here, and I catch a bunch of them on the same things. My #1 go to presentation for bed fishing is a drop shot rig, with a 3" or 4" wacky rigged green pumpkin yum dinger with the tail dyed chart.....that rig should be outlawed when bed fishing smallmouth LOL.

Rage craw 

More important than the lure and color is your mode of presentation.

Above all, you've got to keep the lure in the bed as long as you can.

During the actual spawn (not pre or post), the females are basically fasting,

so the pick-up is the result of the cow "taking out the garbage" rather than feeding.

 

Roger

The Ned rig or the 2.5 inch yum crawbug are my two favorite bed fishing baits, but I also use jigs, lizards, etc. Fish them very slow, and keep it on the nest as long as possible.  They really like/hate it when its deadsticked for a few seconds, then lightly shaken.

 

 Every bed has a sweet spot, the spot on the bed where the majority of the eggs are.  Try to find it, if anything touches that spot the bass will likely pick the bait up.  And keep changing lures, I bring every rod I own while bed fishing and will only give each lure a cast or two before setting it down and trying another unless the bass shows interest in it.  Every bass has a certain 'personality', you have to learn what makes each individual bass mad and repeatedly make it mad until it picks the offending lure off its bed to remove it.  A big part of bed fishing is learning bass behavior, or how to interpret their body language.  An example of this is that when a bass starts moving it's pectoral fins rapidly while tilting it's head downward, it means the bass is highly agitated and will likely pick the lure up.

6 minutes ago, IndianaFinesse said:

The Ned rig or the 2.5 inch yum crawbug are my two favorite bed fishing baits, but I also use jigs, lizards, etc. Fish them very slow, and keep it on the nest as long as possible.  They really like/hate it when its deadsticked for a few seconds, then lightly shaken.

 

 Every bed has a sweet spot, the spot on the bed where the majority of the eggs are.  Try to find it, if anything touches that spot the bass will likely pick the bait up.  And keep changing lures, I bring every rod I own while bed fishing and will only give each lure a cast or two before setting it down and trying another unless the bass shows interest in it.  Every bass has a certain 'personality', you have to learn what makes each individual bass mad and repeatedly make it mad until it picks the offending lure off its bed to remove it.  A big part of bed fishing is learning bass behavior, or how to interpret their body language.  An example of this is that when a bass starts moving it's pectoral fins rapidly while tilting it's head downward, it means the bass is highly agitated and will likely pick the lure up.

 

   Excellent coverage!

 

   Roger

Nothing gets a reaction the way a 8+ inch plastic lizard will.

A Ned rig has been a very effective bed fishing bait for me. 

Agree with above posts about keeping the lure on the bed and about paying attention to the fish's body language as best you can.  Sometimes high lure visibility is also really helpful - hence colors like white, bubblegum, methiolate, etc being really popular because they make it so much easier to see your bait so you can keep it on the beds easier and watch how bass orient themselves regarding it.  

 

That said, I don't always switch to he Barbie colored Trick Worm, either.  If I'm fishing very shallow and know exactly where the bass are, or if there is stain to the water, I tend to revert back to normal color selection.  

 

I never got got into lizard fishing, but I have done well with T-rigged worms and finesse jigs tipped with small craws (Bitsy jigs and craws are a good for this).  I like the small craws because they A) represent a threat to the eggs, B ) can be drug, shook in place, or dead sticked really easily, C) seem like a small enough meal for the female to actually hang on to/feel less weight.  

 

In in place of the craw, I could imagine a sculpin, madtom, lizard/salamander, goby, or blue gill imitation probably also working pretty well depending on the lake/River. 

11 hours ago, Brayberry said:

Nothing gets a reaction the way a 8+ inch plastic lizard will.

 

This

The water is usually to dirty for me to bed fish . When I do get a chance I use a lizard because thats what I  read to do   . I have caught exactly zero fish  with them on visible beds . Next time I'm just using whatever soft plastic lure  thats tied on . 

My Favorite bed fishing bait is to dropshot the Jackall 3" Super Crosstail Shad in The Baby Bass and Silver Shad colors.

I still like a zoom lizard better than anything else.

@J Francho would say a Carolina rig 

 

@IndianaFinesse shocker 

On 1/25/2017 at 8:23 PM, Yeajray231 said:

@J Francho would say a Carolina rig 

 

@IndianaFinesse shocker 

 

 

 

I think JFrancho might say dropshot rig 

Lol nah he said he loves the accuracy and sensitivity that comes with the c-rig 

Liz-zard

Ive caught the majority of mine on various worms, creature baits,lizards.

I dont have too much strategy for fishing beds but I like the full moon phase in spring.I find the beds and fish them late in the day.I cast past the bed and pull the bait onto it,or skip the bait onto the bed.Then you fish them til they bite.

More often than not,it wont be long!

I think a Neko rigged Fluke in a Bluegill/Bream color would get hammered.

Throw net.

^

On 1/25/2017 at 8:23 PM, Yeajray231 said:

@J Francho would say a Carolina rig 

 

Michigan cricket.....

 

A white jig with a white floating craw if I'm having to pester the fish until it bites, but the first thing I would throw is a drop shot. On big fish or in tournaments I'll use some of my precious clone gills on a drop shot.