We all speak of bass eating bluegill and shad. I have always used the term bluegill to mean any similar bream, and used the term shad to mean any similar sized baitfish.

 

So, do bass care if it's a bluegill or another species of bream such as a green sunfish, a warmouth, a longear, a pumkinseed?

 

Likewise, do bass care if it's a gizzard shad or a threadfin, or (heck I don't even know the other types)?

 

So I guess my question is, will some or all bass differentiate between prey species?

 

Second question, what about a bluegill eater, if he's targeting bluegill beds and a fat shad comes swimming by, will he be just as likely to hit that or less likely?

I think it may only matter depending on how hungry the fish is. If they're really hungry, it probably doesn't matter. Food is food. If not that hungry, maybe they are a little more selective. There are times I'm more selective on the pieces of chicken I eat, there are other times it doesn't matter. 

 

In terms of lures, I try to keep it simple and think as long as the shape and color are close, we have a shot. Not that I'm exactly a hammer. 

I think most of the time, bass will eat any opportunistic profile when feeding, from bugs to crawfish to bait to even other smaller bass.  Looking up or down to feed being the most important consideration.  But I have found times when they are so keyed in on a specific prey, that size, color, and profile have to be matched to be considered.

 

scott

In my opinion, bass prefer slim-bodied prey more than the dinner-plate shaped ones. So I operate as if the primary baitfish forage is yellow perch and golden shiners. They’re both slimmer than sunfish species. I often see large bass intermingling with big schools of sunfish and the sunfish pay the bass no mind. Schools of yellow perch and golden shiners flee immediately when any bass comes near them, and I believe there is a reason for this. I guess what I’m getting at is that sunfish are not as preyed upon by bass as much as it’s stated, IMO. Especially if there is a slimmer forage in abundance, like there is on my waters. Lots of perch and golden shiners. 
 

But I am not saying bass don’t eat sunfish, because they certainly do. 

The prey type needs to be abundant and a size the bass can swallow and not choke on the dorsal fine spines.

There are several bream species and shad species plus herring and a variety of minnows/shiners.

Longer thin profile like herring and most minnows/shiners are easy to swallow soft ray fish. Shad are also soft ray fish a wider body profile and easy to swallow.

Bream means different fish regionally let’s just Bluegill, Pumpkin Seed, Sunfish; green, red ear, some perch species and crappie are commonly called bream. Bluegill are spiny ray fish with wide body profile and adults are difficult to swallow. Size is important when discussing bream as a food source for bass over 5” or hand size would be difficult for most bass to swallow successfully.

When bass are focused on abundant prey type being available other prey is ignored generally. For example if the bass are feeding on Threadfin shad they ignore nearly everything else at that moment.

Tom

PS, bass don’t know their own size vs the prey and mistakes can be fatal.

1 hour ago, Bazoo said:

We all speak of bass eating bluegill and shad. I have always used the term bluegill to mean any similar bream, and used the term shad to mean any similar sized baitfish.

 

So, do bass care if it's a bluegill or another species of bream such as a green sunfish, a warmouth, a longear, a pumkinseed?

 

Likewise, do bass care if it's a gizzard shad or a threadfin, or (heck I don't even know the other types)?

 

So I guess my question is, will some or all bass differentiate between prey species?

 

Second question, what about a bluegill eater, if he's targeting bluegill beds and a fat shad comes swimming by, will he be just as likely to hit that or less likely?

Just had a big 'gill spawn here.  And the bass were shallow, even though the water temps were mid 80s.  Nearly every bass caught around bluegill beds spit up threadfin shad.  Take that for whatever it's worth.  

   In my lake that is full of traditional bass prey, the only time I key my lures on a specific forage is when they are on gizzard schools; big, falling baits.  Any other times, I'm more focused on whether they are feeding up, feeding on the bottom, not real aggressive, etc.   Presentation means more to me than trying to match the prey.

It most certainly matters. I suggest you go buy all your favorite crankbaits in the following colors:

 

Threadfin

Alewife

Gizzard Shad

Herring

Shiner

Smelt

 

Sincerely,

BaitMonkey

4 hours ago, fishballer06 said:

It most certainly matters. I suggest you go buy all your favorite crankbaits in the following colors:

 

Threadfin

Alewife

Gizzard Shad

Herring

Shiner

Smelt

 

Sincerely,

BaitMonkey

You forgot: 

Bluegill

Male bluegill 

Female bluegill 

Pumpkinseed 

Crappie 

Sunfish 

Perch

Yes they eat it all. Size matters. Don't over think it. Color matters less than size and weight I think when it comes to lure selection. Right when you think you have it figured out, they change. Sometimes they eat things not like the prey. Sometimes they only eat things very specifically. 

The best thing to do is carry 30 rods and throw the entire bait store at them.... Or just throw a senko and forget all the other stuff. 

It all works. But most of the time none of it does. 

14 minutes ago, FishTax said:

It all works. But most of the time none of it does. 

 

 

Well said and completely true.

 

I think bass eat all sorts of things for all sorts of reasons. 

 

I think it is a mistake to assume that when a bass bites your lure it is trying to eat it.

11 minutes ago, Pat Brown said:

 

 

Well said and completely true.

 

I think bass eat all sorts of things for all sorts of reasons. 

 

I think it is a mistake to assume that when a bass bites your lure it is trying to eat it.

What are some reasons bass might eat something if not for food?

25 minutes ago, OldManLure said:

What are some reasons bass might eat something if not for food?

 

 

That's the interesting question, isn't it!?!?

 

🤷🏼‍♂️🤷🏼‍♂️🤷🏼‍♂️🤷🏼‍♂️🤷🏼‍♂️

 

Definitely lots of reasons at different times of year under different conditions and circumstances for different fish.  But I guarantee they don't think your crankbait is a shad LOL.

They may not think the crankbait is a shad, but I guarantee it has provided enough cues to convince the bass it is food.

39 minutes ago, OldManLure said:

What are some reasons bass might eat something if not for food?

Moving something out of it's bed during the spawn. I'm just guessing really

1 hour ago, OldManLure said:

What are some reasons bass might eat something if not for food?

Curiosity.  A bass can't pick something up, or grab something as it goes by, to figure out if it's food or not.. The only option they have is to suck it into their mouth and then decide.

Protection/reaction. Often times your lure will come within their comfort zone and they will attack it especially if it's moving fast, or it will suddenly appear and they attack it to defend themselves. 

15 minutes ago, LokiDawg said:

Moving something out of it's bed during the spawn. I'm just guessing really

That does seem like a possibility and I probably wouldn’t be too surprised if that happens.  I have had the opportunity on a few occasions to observe from an elevated vantage point male smallmouth on their beds in the Shenandoah and Potomac rivers.  It was fascinating to watch what appeared to be near frantic swimming patterns to protect the beds from a threat, a threat that wasn’t always obvious to me.  I know their behavior wasn’t as frantic as it looked.  It was purposeful.  I did not see any evidence that they took a threat into their mouth to injure it or spit it out away from the bed.  It seemed their other aggressive displays served them well as they would return to almost a sentry-like pose on the bed.  

5 minutes ago, papajoe222 said:

Curiosity.  A bass can't pick something up, or grab something as it goes by, to figure out if it's food or not.. The only option they have is to suck it into their mouth and then decide.

Protection/reaction. Often times your lure will come within their comfort zone and they will attack it especially if it's moving fast, or it will suddenly appear and they attack it to defend themselves. 

To your first point, they took into their mouth suspecting it was food.  If for some reason they decide otherwise, they’ll expel it.

To your second point, I think a moving lure alerts a healthy bass long before they can be surprised by it.  Now if you drop a lure on their head…maybe.  

I am no fishery biologist, but I have been around many fish species my whole life, from diving, to working in large aquariums most of my life. Watching fish for more hours than I care to admit. I feel a bass is opportunistic and will eat what it can catch while using the least amount of energy. Schooling bass seem to prefer schooling bait, Large loner bass ambush what comes close to their home ambush area. I do think they prefer shad , shiners, and other minnows if available, do to the lack of spines. They will eat bream and their cousins if that's a primary species in that body of water. Especially if they can use their accute senses to detect one that is sick, injured or has a genetic defect.

Sorry kiddos, Nemo would have been someone's lunch do to his "lucky fin."

This is all just my humble opinion.

I think they're an apex predator for the most part outside of birds and otters, so sometimes they just kill things that are annoying. Maybe not. They won't answer me when I talk to them. But their behavior seems to indicate to me sometimes that they attack things when they aren't feeding. 

Regarding beds, they definitely pick things up and move them without swallowing on a regular basis. I've watched it happen many times. The ole suck and blow. 

3 hours ago, FishTax said:

I think they're an apex predator for the most part outside of birds and otters, so sometimes they just kill things that are annoying. Maybe not. They won't answer me when I talk to them. But their behavior seems to indicate to me sometimes that they attack things when they aren't feeding. 

Regarding beds, they definitely pick things up and move them without swallowing on a regular basis. I've watched it happen many times. The ole suck and blow. 

Thanks. I didn't know they move things with their mouth. So they might move a rock that's in their bed for example.

On 7/18/2025 at 8:10 PM, FishTax said:

Yes they eat it all. Size matters. Don't over think it. Color matters less than size and weight I think when it comes to lure selection. Right when you think you have it figured out, they change. Sometimes they eat things not like the prey. Sometimes they only eat things very specifically. 

The best thing to do is carry 30 rods and throw the entire bait store at them.... Or just throw a senko and forget all the other stuff. 

It all works. But most of the time none of it does. 

 

Great post. They sure muddle me. I just went out and changed the majority of my lures, hoping that one of them will work better tomorrow morning than this morning's lures did.

On 7/18/2025 at 7:29 PM, papajoe222 said:

Curiosity.  A bass can't pick something up, or grab something as it goes by, to figure out if it's food or not.. The only option they have is to suck it into their mouth and then decide.

Protection/reaction. Often times your lure will come within their comfort zone and they will attack it especially if it's moving fast, or it will suddenly appear and they attack it to defend themselves. 

Watch Glen Lua Bigmouth Forever video amazing footage of bass engulfing crank baits without the angler detecting the strike!

Tom