Video on How to Use a Spinning Reel

https://youtu.be/CqQksLnRAS4

Why Snagging Shad Is a Good Thing

If you've been bass fishing long, chances are good that you've snagged a shad.  There are several different types of shad. The most common in my area is the gizzard shad, which has a grey color.

Shad range from the size of your finger all the way up to the size of your foot.  See below.

One thing is true about shad.  You'll always catch them by snag.  They're filter feeders.  They constantly inhale water and feed off of microscopic plankton and organisms.

Don't get me wrong, you may hook one in the mouth area, like this.

That's not because the shad decided to strike.  It simply got close enough to the lure to inhale the business end of the hook.  Of course, this begs the question of why.

The answer is simple.  Be it a shad crank bait or a shad swim bait, your lure looked real enough to fool the actual shad into schooling up with it.  If it can trick a shad into doing that, the lure can definitely trick a bass into striking.  So if you have a lure that seems to snag a lot of shad, KEEP THROWING IT!

Plus there's one other thing.  Shad make fantastic catfish bait.  The shad pictured here were released unharmed because I didn't have my catfishing pole at the time.

Tight lines!

Best Way to Identify Crappie

Crappie, bluegill, and sunfish are all included in a group of called panfish. They have a lot of similarities in appearance, but it's important to know when you have a crappie versus another type of panfish.

This is especially true here in Texas, where crappie are considered game fish but bluegill and sunfish are not.  Bluegill and sunfish are good cut bait for catfish.  It is absolutely illegal to use crappie as bait.

Let's start with comparing a crappie and a sunfish.  In the photo below, the crappie is on top and the sunfish is on bottom.

Now let's compare a crappie and a bluegill.  Again, the crappie is on top.

Notice that in the case of sunfish and bluegill, there is a distinctive black spot on the bottom rear corner of the dorsal fin that the crappie does not have.  I'll let you study the pictures to note other differences.  Now you can catch panfish with confidence!

The fish pictured were released.  Tight lines!