Early morning offers best fishing

For the rest of the Christmas week anglers will see substantial improvements in fishing conditions as temperatures return to seasonal norms.

With the first-quarter moon arriving tomorrow at 5:36 p.m. the early morning bite will steadily increase in both intensity and duration more each day, while the late evening bite decrease at about the same rates respectively.

The early morning bite starts at 5 a.m., peaks at sunrise, and shuts down at 9 a.m. and will reach a 5 rating on the 1-10 scale. Each day for the rest of this week, this feeding migration will improve in rating by one point and increase in duration by 30 minutes while starting at about the same time of 5-6 a.m. By Saturday the rating should max out at 8-9 and provide anglers with four to five hours of optimum fishing conditions.

The late evening bite starts at 4 a.m., peaks at sundown, and finishes at 8 p.m., reaching a peak rating of 7 today. For the rest of the week however this feeding migration decreases rapidly each day. Both intensity and duration diminish significantly so that by Friday a less-than-desirable rating of 4, and an intensity level consisting of a light feeding and duration of one hour can be expected.

The nighttime migration also diminishes for the remainder of this week as the early-morning bite takes over as the dominate-feeding migration of the twenty-four hour day.

The nighttime rating will drop to a 5 with no real intensity to speak of, as fish eat moderately to light all night long. However as the water temperature warms back up - upper 50s to lower to-mid 60s as the nighttime low - this nighttime feeding migration will increase in intensity and last the entire night as it normally does during the Florida winter season.

Fishing facts

The majority of the Florida bass population spawns during the months of January through March.

Fishing formula

The fishes' metabolism is regulated by water temperatures and thus the speed at which they will chase bait and the rate at which they will repeatedly feed changes accordingly. For this reason the angler must adjust his bait so the rate of drop through the water column matches the nature speed of the fish at the given temperature. Using a lighter bullet weight or no weight at all, should be one of the first adjustments. Replacing large plastic bait with one half the size also should be set-up on one rod.

The rate of fall, speed of retrieve, and length of pause must all be adjusted in accordance to the water temperatures throughout the day. For instance the other when fishing in water temperatures at 62 degrees, employing the "dead-sticking" technique - where the bait is not moved after the bait first hits the water for about one minute or longer - was the only way I could get a bite.

Fishing fiction

"Bass only spawn once a year here in Florida during the months of January to March." This is not true. Bass spawn all year long and many larger females only drop a 1/3 or ½ of their eggs per bed over a period of two or three months. For instance if a bass is interrupted right as she is about to lay her eggs, she will drop some of the eggs off of the bed but retain enough eggs to try again with another male on a different bed. It is not a one-chance thing, the female bass will work through adversity and attempt to prevail at all cost to procreate more than once a year.

Fishing flash

Lake Istokpoga's level is at 39.32 feet above sea level today. With water temperatures in the mid-to-lower 60s as an average, the bass angler can be sure of one thing--the Istokpoga trophy largemouth bass are busy spawning. But the challenge is finding them since the recent aquatic weed control treatments occurred in many of the traditional spawning areas.

Bass have moved into non-traditional areas in close proximity to traditional areas because bass won't work any harder than they need to. If moved out of their first choice area, they'll travel upwind until they find suitable clean cover and structure. Many times in this shallow lake, this means moving to five to seven feet of water depth, in hydrilla, and under the layer of turbidity that occupies the top three feet of the water column.

Tournament news

The Monday Morning Lake Josephine Black Bass Fishing Tournament is open to the public and launches every Monday morning at 8 a.m. with weigh-in at 1 p.m. Entry fee is $10 per boat with a "winner-take-all" payout. One person or two per boat, three legal (more than 14 inches) bass per boat, and one bass over 22 inches per angler. For information, call Paul Tardiff at 863-385-8007 (home) or 863-273-4062 (cell).

The Wednesday Morning Black Bass Tournament will be on Lake Josephine today and next week's event, December 30, is on Lake Jackson. Launch time is 7:30 a.m. and weigh-in time is at noon. Entry fee is $30 per boat to be paid at the ramp. For complete information call Paul Tardiff, home: 863-385-8007, cell: 863-273-4062, or Dwight Ameling, 863-471-3305.

Your Lake Manager's contact information

FWC Largemouth Bass Research Study Program: E-mail: TagReturn@MyFWC.com, or phone: FWC Tag Return Hotline: 800-267-4461. Mail address: LMB Tagging Study, 601 W. Woodward Ave., Eustis, FL, 32726

FFWCC Fishkill Report Hot Line: 800-636-0511, or go online at www.My FWC.com/contact.

Clell Ford - Lakes Management Specialist, Highlands County, 4434 George Blvd., Sebring, Florida 33875. Phone: 863-402-6545, E-mail: Cford@hcbcc.org

Vicki Pontius, Parks and Recreation Director, Highlands County, 4344 George Blvd., Sebring, Florida33875. Phone: 863-402-6812, E-mail: Vpontius@hcbcc.org

Steven Gornak, FFWCC, Aquatic Habitat Restoration and Enhancement Sub-Section, Division of Habitat and Species Conservation, 3991 S.E. 27th Court, Okeechobee, FL 34974. Phone: 863-462-5190 Mobile: 863-697-6256, E-mail: steven.gornak@myfwc.com

Erica Van Horn, FFWCC, Invasive Plant Management Section, 2001 Homeland Garfield Rd., Bartow, FL 33830, Phone: 863-534-7074, E-mail: erica.vanhorn@myfwc.com