Shad Kill

Will these temps cause a larger than normal Shad die off ? What will that do to the winter cat bite ?

there will be no bite cats will be full

Oh yea. The shad kill will be extreme all across Texas !



Side Note: Maybe the die off will be less severe on active power plant lakes.

I talked to a friend in Port Aransas and he has dead mullet and pinfish behind his house, so yes there will be shad kills in various places across the state.

Hopfully talapia and plecos!

The cats will be fat

Fortunately, should make for some excellent early spring fishing.

After sitting for four hours without so much as a single bite, gonna say the shad kill is in full effect. Birds were just leisurely plopping down and scooping up shad. Weren't even dive bombing them. So, evidently there's plenty of food for all, without having to pursue it.

I sort of expected that to be the report. With the wind up like it is, I didn't think it would be worth the trip. And you've confirmed it... Next weekend they are calling for rain... as long as it's not snow...

Has anybody seen any dead shad on Fork? I have not yet.

Pretty much what I expected too, just wanted to get out of the house more than anything else.

Reports are that they haven’t seen any. I have not been out myself so I cannot vouch for it.

I”ve been on 2 lakes and haven’t see any evidence of a kill. Maybe they haven’t floated up yet, Idk, but I caught plenty of live shad in 38 degree water.

Sometimes they don't float up. Look for oily spots that looks almost like light scum. Already found some on Grapevine going to make for some exceptional fishing this spring.

OK, help me with my education on this stuff please.

I understand cold water/weather kills shad... which - gizzard or threadfin or both?
I understand that a bunch of dead/dying shad make for easy pickings for the fish to eat.

How long does the "shad kill" last? Do they all die within 3-4 days, or does this stretch out over a week or two? With the water warming back up this week, and our typical Texas -2 last Tuesday and 70 this Tuesday, how does that impact this?

Dead shad are not worth much for food after a couple of days, right?

Fish are full and fat for a few days... then they need to eat again. Does this impact or change the way they eat? Reason I ask, is multiple comments about "should be good spring fishing"? Why will this shad kill make for a good spring?

Where should I start looking for shad - live shad for bait, next weekend?

As always, thank you in advance all!

Ken

All I know about shad kills is in the Summer when we have one the shad float up quick and in a week they are mush /rotten,but winter kill shad may lay on the bottom for weeks without spoiling because the water temps are lower.

With the amount of Shad in the lake it can mess up the bite good for several weeks Ken. Shad will mostly sink to the bottom and with the water as cold as it is and they won’t decompose until they are eaten. The ones that float are picked up by birds the first few days. The reason guys say it will be good spring fishing is 2 part. First being the fish will be fat from gorging and weigh a little more but also there will be fewer threadfin which makes locating fish a little easier. Fish are forced to group up better and hunt bait harder with less bait in the water. Right now every fish in the lake is crammed into the channel in the deepest parts of most lakes. As the water starts to warm up they will start their migration north to shallower water and the spring spawn. We didn’t fish this weekend because my son is a little sick from playing in the snow all week. I didn’t want to float around like an idiot either but I’m sure somebody caught a good fish or 2. All my buddies that fished this weekend got smoked.

How many fish did you catch? How big?

Thanks Chris. Hope Jaxon is back to full speed soon!

That all makes sense and helps confirm a lot of what I was thinking. With the normal crazy Texas weather, I am guessing the water will warm back up a little fairly soon... 78 tomorrow in Ft. Worth. But then cool rain for a few days.

I guess the big question that no one will really know until it is over with, is just how bad each lake's shad kill is, and how long it will take the fish to run out of free handouts LOL.

Also, will the dead shad in deep water delay the fish moving north to shallower water, even if the temps rise in the north shallow water. Cedar Creek - north end is a big shallow flat for just general reference... will it delay the fish going there?

Just another opportunity to live and learn.

Take care,

Ken

Lake Worth is exactly the same, the North half of the lake is a shallow flat. It's been a couple weeks since I had my sonar running on it, but when the water temps were between 49 and 50, the shallow part was deserted.

7 box fish under 10 lbs and 1 at 26 lbs. Few hours on Sunday morning fishing. The other lake I didn't fish, I only went to catch bait...and it was a 1 throw day.

You did a lot better then my buddies! Its been so quiet around here your the first guy I’ve heard a peep out of as far as catching fish. I haven’t seen a single big fish pic since the storms hit.

Let's see if this worked. Pic of the 26 and pic of the bait... could barely get the bait over the side of the boat.

Nice👍 You had some bait! Gotta love getting bait this time of year. Just don’t get any easier! Only problem is you break your back from hauling in such heavy loads. Last trip I hit 100 10-12” drum and just about broke my back hauling em out of 42 ft. I like drum but I don’t like drum that dang much. After these big cold snaps the bait and fish stack is so dang thick you just don’t know for sure what your throwing on. Your fish looks like he’s been gorging...

Nice pic's!

Not sure what I will do if I ever pull a net up like that. I have had a couple of "1 throw" days, but had like 50 baits. Think you beat that! LOL

Ken

That is a net full right there. That 26 is super fat. What depth was the bait in?

My buddy Kyle caught a toad in 65 ft today at Raybob.

So many toads. Maybe the winds will be light enough for me, this Saturday.

I was out crappie fishing with Stubby today and we saw NONE.

The surface temp when I got bait was 38, so I went straight to the deepest holes (30-40) and the bait was there. The fish was in 55-60.

I’m bout to go put in and see if I can get me one!

Son! that is a net full of bait! Those are great fun, when you feel that weight on the retrieve. Chris, you go get 'em today. I'm thinking about going out for a try today as well. I was at Lavon yesterday, saw some threadfin floating in the marina. Just a couple here and there. Not a lot. Birds looks all fat and happy though... I got a brand new set of Parks Planer boards here and I can't wait to try them out.

Lets see what we can do today fellas! Tight lines y'all...

Some of us gotta work for a living... Still trying to get everything back together after the freeze. Gotta make the whiskey!

Hope you all catch a bunch of toads... will be waiting on the pictures!

Chris - still want some video of your scanning - graphing. What to look for, etc.

Be safe all.

Ken

Catfish will eat anything.