Bass Through The Ice

[MCTFisher9120]

I am in now way fishing for bass through the ice. I simply would like to know as to why bass are to be left alone during the winter months. I know they are OOS but im just a little curious as to why exactly.

Edited January 4, 2009 by Mike The Bass Fisher

[kemper]

They get kicked all summer, give them a break

[lookinforwalleye]

perhaps they just need a rest from us chasing them around.

[jediangler]

I believe they tend to group up in cold water making it easy to deplete a given water body's population quite easily.

[MarcusDiGiovanni]

They get kicked all summer, give them a break

that hits the nail right on the head.

[xeon]

Ya I think it has something to do with both the amount of fishing pressure on them, and some effect on their spawning.

[singingdog]

Faulty logic? Ontario's bass regs just don't hold up to scrutiny when compared to other jurisdictions with very similar conditions (northern states with very similar lakes and seasonal conditions). There are lots of places where bass are targetted much more heavily than here - more fisherman, more tournaments - that have year-round seasons and maintain very healthy fisheries.

 

In this area, trout and walleye are targetted by way more fisherfolks than bass, and they are open for hardwater season.

[bucktail]

Jedi is correct, smallmouths can be hit hard in the areas they hibernate due to there schooling properties.

Largemouth are generally more spread out and active at first ice.

I like the regs the way they are, if you look at tourney weights of Ontario to most of the US you will see a great average weight up here.

I do wish they had a prespawn catch and release season in Erie tho. Erie ciould take that pressure and it would offer some bonus fishing to anglers. Just cut it off around mid may before the fish start moving to the beds.

[Rich]

Ontario's bass regs are dated and need to be re-worked.

 

There is no good reason for a closed ice season.

[DANIMAL]

-Bass pair up in the fall, so if that pair gets separated in winter they wont spawn.

-Smallmouth often winter in very deep water 30-60 feet. And being brought up to the surface from that depth can kill them.

-Smallmouth really group up in winter. So do ice anglers. It would be a slaughter.

 

I think some large bodies of water like Erie would not be affected by it. But it could really do damage to the fishery on smaller lakes.

Edited January 6, 2009 by DANIMAL

[cram]

I think the rules are fine the way they are.

 

I assume the only bass you could target htrough the ice even if you wanted to are those which are schooled up, and that's exactly when they need protection.

 

I also wonder if bass suffer higher mortality rates when released during the ice season as well. Its not like they are mobile in the winter like trout or whities. Maybe they can't handle the fight (and cold-dry-air shock to the gills) the way other species can.

Edited January 6, 2009 by cram

[Mike Pike]

Plus, fishing for bass through the ice would just be kinda.. weird.

[ch312]

Ontario's bass regs are dated and need to be re-worked.

 

There is no good reason for a closed ice season.

 

and we have a winner

 

you cant say that we fish for them in the summer so they need a break in the winter what about trout, walleye, pike, perch, etc? theres plenty of bass around so they dont need a so called break in the winter. i had quite a chuckle when i read the posts stating that they need a break in the winter

[capt bruce]

Hard to fish top water in a 6 inch hole , cant imagine what it would be like to see a big smallie crash a jitter bug through a hole in two feet of ice lol

[Cookslav]

I don't know....

Science or no Science I could care less.

 

I can catch them in the Summer, and just catch something else in the Winter...to each their own I S'pose?

The science and comparisons to other Areas that are open suggest the populations could with stand it in some areas.

But I don't think instituting a Winter Bass season is exsactly "needed" either.

 

We have a great fishery here all year long for a multitude of Species...if it ain't broke why fix it?

[ch312]

Hard to fish top water in a 6 inch hole , cant imagine what it would be like to see a big smallie crash a jitter bug through a hole in two feet of ice lol

 

lol guys would be out there standin 15ft from the holes flippin pork

[kemper]

I really think its great to have a closed season on bass in the winter.

 

I have been fishin Buckhorn lake every summer since I was 5 with my dad for a week, and I can honestly say that the fishing has been getting progresively (sp) slower.

 

That said, it HAS picked up significantly in the past two summers.

 

Bass arent very active during the winter anyways are they?

[Rich]

Bass are just as active as pike. As for the schooling issue, why should seasons be the same on largemouth and smallmouth? They are seperate species. Largemouth I know from watching underwater cameras do not pair up and are active at certain periods of the day.

 

Since smallies school so deep, instituting a winter season on largemouth (which are generally found shallower, alongside crappies and pike) would not be hard to regulate.

Edited January 6, 2009 by Rich

[Markystang]

Bass are just as active as pike. As for the schooling issue, why should seasons be the same on largemouth and smallmouth? They are seperate species. Largemouth I know from watching underwater cameras do not pair up and are active at certain periods of the day.

 

Since smallies school so deep, instituting a winter season on largemouth (which are generally found shallower, alongside crappies and pike) would not be hard to regulate.

I believe there are thousands of anglers(not hardcore) who don't know the difference between a Largemouth and a Smallmouth. They can tell the difference between a pike and a trout, or a sunfish and a "pickerel", but a bass is a bass to most "occasional" fisherman. I would guess this contributes to why MNR classes them together.

[blakewalk]

-Bass pair up in the fall, so if that pair gets separated in winter they wont spawn.

-Smallmouth often winter in very deep water 30-60 feet. And being brought up to the surface from that depth can kill them.

-Smallmouth really group up in winter. So do ice anglers. It would be a slaughter.

 

True- plus I think we have plenty to go for in the cold months; let us not be greedy. lol

[Fishnwire]

I've never even caught at smallmouth through the ice by accident...or seen one caught. I've seen a couple of large mouths come up while fishing for crappie, but that's about it. I don't think they are "as active as pike" in the winter. Not by a long shot. At least not where I am. (Sudbury.)

[richyb]

I got 2 nice smallies through the ice today while fishing for perch ... They were released unharmed.. My first time getting a smallie through the ice but i have got lots of largies.

[DANIMAL]

Bass are just as active as pike. As for the schooling issue, why should seasons be the same on largemouth and smallmouth? They are seperate species. Largemouth I know from watching underwater cameras do not pair up and are active at certain periods of the day.

 

Since smallies school so deep, instituting a winter season on largemouth (which are generally found shallower, alongside crappies and pike) would not be hard to regulate.

 

 

I think a largemouth season is a good idea. And as far as I know they dont necessarily swim together like they do when spawning but they do pick their mates in the fall, so catch and release would be in order.

[kemper]

I believe there are thousands of anglers(not hardcore) who don't know the difference between a Largemouth and a Smallmouth. They can tell the difference between a pike and a trout, or a sunfish and a "pickerel", but a bass is a bass to most "occasional" fisherman. I would guess this contributes to why MNR classes them together.

This is very true, I have seen countless pictures here with incorrectly named bass

[DANIMAL]

Largemouth and smallmouth bass look no more alike than musky and pike, or different species of trout and salmon witch have different seasons. There is some confusion between them but for the most part the different seasons work out pretty good. Besides, if an angler catches a fish that they can't positively identify they should release it immediatly.