what to feed shad

This feeding rate model was confirmed in an experiment which compared computer simulated to observed shad feeding rates. Shad, fathead minnows, shiners and creek chubs are widely used for bait. Like other fish, their feeding instinct can be triggered by a variety of factors such as turbidity and water temperature.

Shad lures can work extremely well for any species that regularly feed on this smaller fish. Whether you are fishing largemouth bass, striped bass, white bass, catfish or other species, a good shad imitation lure might be exactly what you need to entice hungry fish. Anglers pinpoint feeding fish bylooking for swirls on the surface or shad leaping from the water to escape. Circling gulls diving to catchinjured shad also can reveal the location of feeding bass. Sometimes,several acres of water may be churning with feeding bass as they surround shadin open water or herd them into dead-end bays. Rapala has several "shad" paint patterns to choose from. Catching Shad The balsa-wood, Rapala Shad Rap is a go-to of mine. Why they work: The flash and wobble of a spoon is a great shad stand-in. Why it works: It produces bass in a mix of shallow and mid-depth scenarios. If the bass have the shad corralled and are in a feeding frenzy lots of lures already mentioned will work . Shad are also valued as a sport fish that exhibit complex and little-understood feeding behaviors while spawning. In that case I ignore the shad and fish like they are not there . Shad Cranks. Unlike salmon, shad retain the ability to digest and assimilate food during the anadromous migration. When fishing around feeding bass, the two top attributes to look for in a bait are castability and retrieve speed. The feeding rate of filter-feeding gizzard shad on a particular prey type was equal to the multiple of 4 factors: (1) prey density, (2) shad filtering rate, (3) shad capture efficiency, and (4) shad filtering efficiency. For that reason, lipless crankbaits like the Strike King Red Eye Shad take top billing. Spoons. Start with your minnows in a separate container, and gradually raise or lower the water temperature until it …

Why they work: Wide-bodied crankbaits are deadly. If the shad are in the cove by the millions and bass are occasionally seen hitting the surface , those are hard to catch .