I would like to start catching shad for striper fishing on texoma. Does anyone have a recommendation of a cast net to use? I would like to know what brand, size, and mesh size that works for you guys. Thanks for any info!
Sir, this is from an article I wrote last year right as the shad were beginning to spawn in the spring of 2021. There are quite a few cast net considerations addressed here if you care to read ...
CAPTION: This side-by-side comparison shows a Fitec 13070 tape-style cast net, right, fully expanded as it sinks downward, whereas the traditional, non-tape net of identical radius and weight, left, collapses as it falls, thus greatly reducing its ability to catch bait.
Courtesy | Holding the Line Guide Service
With all of the modern advancements in technology and electronics, it is easy to overlook the subtle clues nature provides us with as the change of seasons plays out year after year.
Although the things I observe for over the course of the year are too numerous to list, a few germane to this part of the spring season are how the appearance of mosquito hawks coincide with the first spawning white bass to show up in the spawning shallows of our local rivers, and how the arrival of laughing gulls coincides with the departure of the more helpful ring-billed gulls and Forster’s terns — birds which can be relied upon to help find cold-season fish.
This week, another significant clue was provided ... the return of the whippoorwill to cedar breaks around Central Texas. If you listen closely in the two hours or so before sunrise, you will hear this bird’s distinctive call from which its name is derived. It sounds like the phrase, “whip poor Will” spoken very quickly.
When the whippoorwills show up, the annual threadfin shad spawn is poised to begin. This annual rite takes place through about the last week of May or first week of June. On most mornings (excepting mornings with cold, north winds blowing), these protein-rich baitfish which make up the lion’s share of our two local reservoirs’ forage base, will make a short, intense migration from out of deeper water to the shoreline.
Once there, the shad will swim rapidly parallel to the shoreline in under 6 feet of water in incredible numbers. Sometimes the density of these spawning fish is so great that wave action or pursuit by predators will cause a few individuals to be thrown from the water and stranded upon the shore.
As these shad swim, the females broadcast their sticky eggs as the males release their milt (a fish’s version of semen) to fertilize the eggs. The eggs develop rather quickly until the fry sprout enough appendages to propel them and help them to break free from whatever their sticky coating anchored them to.
From that point on, they will wander open waters for the rest of their lives, always accompanied by other shad, feeding on zooplankton and phytoplankton. They will also serve as the primary food source for all manner of game and non-game species of fish.
During this roughly eight-week event, using live shad as bait is hard to beat.
Being ready to find, catch, and maintain shad takes preparation. The foundation of the collection of shad for bait is a quality, well-thrown cast net. I prefer threadfin shad over gizzard shad as bait because they tend to be more frisky, although they are also more fragile.
Some years ago, I worked with Fitec, one of the major cast net manufacturers, to develop a net just for catching threadfin shad and keeping them healthy. This seven-foot radius net (the largest allowed by regulation) features an atypical 5/16-inch mesh, heavy weighting around the perimeter (for a fast sink rate), and the addition of a tape webbing to make the net expand as it sinks versus collapsing as a standard, non-tape net will do.
This fine mesh prevents “gilling” which takes place on nets of a larger mesh size wherein a shad gets its gill plates caught in the mesh, thus typically killing the bait.
Locally, National Athletic Supply carries this net — Fitec item number 13070. Just ask for the “Bob Maindelle” net and the Thompson’s will know what you are after. They may be reached at 254-939-8789.
I do not stand to gain from the sale of these nets — I am simply letting you know of an effective tool to consider if you are serious about using shad for bait. The net can be found online, as well, at
www.castnets.com.Most people will opt for a cheaper, smaller (5- or 6-foot radius), lightweight net with a larger (3/8- or ½-inch) mesh — and most people will get very frustrated at the lack of bait they obtain by going that route.
Next, regardless of the net you use, you need to throw your net well. By all means, do not go out, buy a net and throw it for the first time off the side of your boat or from the bank without ever having practiced with it previously. All nets throw a bit differently based on their weight and diameter. A half hour invested in the backyard throwing on grass will pay big dividends.
Further, be sure to practice throwing from an elevated platform. Think about it — your boat is raised up higher than the water level and so you want to recreate this scenario when you practice casting your net. That extra one or two feet of drop will make a difference on how much your net fans out.
There are many methods for throwing a net. Check out YouTube, find a method you like, stick with it and get good at it.
Once you actually capture bait, you need to handle it minimally and quickly to get it into the vessel you will be using to store that bait. Four things are an absolute must: aeration, filtration, circulation and insulation.
Aeration gives the shad the oxygen they need to breathe. Filtration removes the scales and feces which the shad give off as a stress response to capture. Circulation keeps ammonia from building up on the bottom of your container, and insulation prevents spikes in water temperature which are fatal to the fragile shad.
Using a shad-tank specifically designed to accomplish all of these functions is a shortcut to success.
Once again, National Athletic Supply in the Belton industrial park is the only place for many miles around to actually go and look at a variety of sizes and designs of well-built shad tanks.
Making sure the water in your bait storage vessel is about the same as the water temperature the fish were taken from is wise, as is the addition of about one cup of rock salt per 10 gallons of water. This softens the water and also prevents follow-on scale loss.
If you use tap water, you will also need to use a chemical which removes the chlorine and/or chloramine which is added by the drinking water treatment plant that water comes from.
There is a lot more to actually hooking and presenting shad as bait for gamefish, and I will address those things later in the season, but for now, getting your gear dusted off, soaking your net in warm water with liquid fabric softener to make it more throwable and to make it spread wider, mending any holes in your net, making sure your have your water-conditioning chemistry all ready to go and making sure you have your dip net handy are all things to hurry up and address now that the whippoorwills are calling.