how do you determine a bed , is a bass bed?

this morning i went fishing and saw lots of beds, i didn't see any fish, of any kind on, or around them, how can you tell what species made the bed once you find one? or do all species just share beds? i have always thought bass liked to make their own bed every year, but i don't know the difference between them unless i see fish on them. i do know that a nile perch, or tilapia bed somewhat resembles a soup bowl , kind of like a small crater look. thanks.

There will be a bass that is tending that bed. He will leave when you scare him off and keep returning. He usually doesn't go far. If they are spawning then there will be a male and a female that keep returning to that same spot.

Not all bed-sites are active.

For instance, if the lake level changes after the bed has been swept,

the nest might be abandoned if the depth is unsuitable for incubation (improper photosynthesis).

Furthermore, there's always a generous overlap between spawning stages (pre-spawn, spawn, post-spawn).

If the parents are in the "post-spawn" period (done spawning), the nest will be deserted

but until it becomes silted over, it may still appear to be active.

In the absence of parent bass, the depth and diameter of the nest will usually divulge the maker.

In a natural lake with moderate water clarity, most beds formed by "largemouth" bass

will be 1 to 3 feet deep, about 2½ ft in diameter and close to the protection of a shoreline.

On the other hand, bluegill nests are normally 1½ ft in diameter or less, and because bluegills

tend to nest in tight colonies, the bed spacing will be tighter.

Roger

Old beds (like a year old) can still look shiny new in certain circumstances. As FM suggests, if it's active, you'll eventually see 'em.

Early on in the cycle bass are MUCH more apt to abandon at your approach. When eggs are being tended, they are much less apt to leave. But each bass is an individual and some are spookier than others.

Nothing beats time spent watching. Have fun with it.

Not really answering your question I see...

I don't know Tilapia beds, as we don't have them up here. Here we have bass, and various sunfish beds -the difference being mainly size. Bass and the sunfishes make beds about 1-1/2 times the length of the male that made it.

They vary in what they look like depending mostly on substrate they use. Bass are variable in where they'll dig, bluegill seem to use gravel. Crappies seem to like to be near vegetation. (Oh yes, and catfish and bullheads use or dig tunnels or deep pockets in soft bottoms.) Bass do not dig deep, only deep enough to expose the hard substrate. Some of my waters the beds are paler than the surrounding bottom, in others they are darker, depending on what they are digging down to. Last year, due to flooding, the bass often chose newly flooded grass sprouts! No clearing at all required there. All bass I have seen in my waters avoid having to dig too much, and don't have to bc of the abundance of gravel/cobble.

Bluegills spawn in colonies and the beds are close together in groups.