I seen in a smallmouth fishing book that if you cut open the belly sack thing you can see what their eating so you know what to use.

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Why would you cut it? Just feel the belly. If the belly is squishy, they probably ate a soft grade fish, like a minnow or a shad. When it feels crunchy, they've most likely gulped crawfish and are havinging trouble digesting the shell. And if you sense an object turning end over end, say hello to the spine of a blue gill.

I got that straight from Mike Iaconelli's book.

Not really necessary. Bass will eat what is around them. I am with out a doubt that a small mouth will not look at a crawfish and say "Nah today is shad day, i'll wait for one of em to pass"

yeah feeling the belly is much easier than cutting it open. and it works.

yeah feeling the belly is much easier than cutting it open. and it works.

No harm to the fish either.

i wonder why a smallmouth fishing book would suggest cutting the belly open instead of just feeling it?

i wonder why a smallmouth fishing book would suggest cutting the belly open instead of just feeling it?

OLD SCHOOL BOOK..

i wonder why a smallmouth fishing book would suggest cutting the belly open instead of just feeling it?

OLD SCHOOL BOOK..

oops, should have thought of that. Is this whole "feeling the belly" kind of a new thing then? I learned from a buddy a couple of years ago when i started fishing. Or maybe the book is from way back when...

if you caught the fish to be able to feel it or cut it open, you know what its eating, or willing to eat yeah?  ;D

if you caught the fish to be able to feel it or cut it open, you know what its eating, or willing to eat yeah? ;D

Thats a great great point

Someone at my job stole my Ho-Hos out of my lunch bag.  And you've just given me an idea.

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Ill Join you Hookem: , my box is bigger than yours ;D

Someone at my job stole my Ho-Hos out of my lunch bag. And you've just given me an idea.

I  like your thinkin Micro

Some outfit does or did make a sort of long, narrow eyedropper gizmo designed to inset into a fish's stomach and suck out the contents. It was geared for western trout fly anglers. I'm sure an average trout would really appreciate THAT! Gladly, I have never seen or heard of anyone actually using one.

Why not just look at what you tied on the end of your line. Thats what he ate last.

Someone at my job stole my Ho-Hos out of my lunch bag. And you've just given me an idea.

Wow, thats great

Well you would at least know what they ate in the last couple of days; which may not be what they are eating today.

Why not just stick your finger down the bass throat and see what he barfs up?  

Sorry i couldn't stop myself....

              -searoach

Someone at my job stole my Ho-Hos out of my lunch bag. And you've just given me an idea.

Quit trying to squeeze me!

Some outfit does or did make a sort of long, narrow eyedropper gizmo designed to inset into a fish's stomach and suck out the contents. It was geared for western trout fly anglers. I'm sure an average trout would really appreciate THAT! Gladly, I have never seen or heard of anyone actually using one.

Pondhopper, I know what you're thinking but the stomach probe is actually a great tool for flyfishing. It looks kind of like a small, narrow turkey baster or a big eye dropper. You really only need to barely insert it into the fish's mouth not cram it down into it's stomach. It's just a quick release of the ball on the end and you get a little sampling of what the trout's been eating. Great to help get dialed in with proper fly selection. If I thought it was detrimental to the fish in any way I'd throw it away, but it's much less intrusive than it sounds. I just hope nobody decides to make a vacuum cleaner sized one for us bass fisherman. Just chiming in.  

i wonder why a smallmouth fishing book would suggest cutting the belly open instead of just feeling it?

Because, feeling up a fish is just wrong!!!

Some outfit does or did make a sort of long, narrow eyedropper gizmo designed to inset into a fish's stomach and suck out the contents. It was geared for western trout fly anglers. I'm sure an average trout would really appreciate THAT! Gladly, I have never seen or heard of anyone actually using one.

Stealing food from a fish and I thought taking candy from a baby was wrong sheesh!

Someone at my job stole my Ho-Hos out of my lunch bag.  And you've just given me an idea.

Imagine that

Why not just look at what you tied on the end of your line. Thats what he ate last.

;D

If you got that information out of an old bass fishing book it was probably assuming that you kept the fish for harvest and are filleting it to eat so you could also check out what he's eaten recently while in there. That's my take on it anyway.  That would probably have been a book written prior to "catch and release".