Matt, I enjoyed your crayfish talk. I love to use a circle hook with a live softshell crayfish. The softshells must give off a different smell or light reflection because the bass can zero in on them. Question: what can i feed crayfish to get them to molt in my aquarium?
Matt, Randy Blaukat mentions you quite often and because of that I decided to check out your channel... I am so glad that he does or I would have missed all the excellent information you provide. Great channel and great information all the time. Thanks!
Excellent idea for the series, you Sir are a fabulous teacher in the art of fishing, very good info and very precise. Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge with all of us and please continue with this series, very informative. Thanks and good luck.
A jig resembles a crayfish and bluegill quite well. Even though crayfish are hibernating doesn't mean a bass doesn't think a jig is a crayfish. It just means they are probably concentrating on other forage species.
Hi Matt, A few years back I was scouting Hubbard Lake in northern Mi, I was trolling in the deepest water that I could see the bottom. As I made my way around the south side I came across Crayfish Hatch! It seem that there were zillons of them. I called my friend who is teaching me how to fish for Bass. he said Wayne enjoy, take some pics, you just came across Crayfish Hatch. When I look up and there was Crayfish parts floating in deeper water. I realize that the Walleye and Smallies were feasting on them. He taught me sometimes you have to keep your rods at home and do some homework!! Without a doubt your channel is the best teaching channel. I Thank You for that! If Sponsors were smart, you should have you a fishing show! I really don't like to watch people catch fish after fish. We want to be taught!! I hope your Subscribers get on board!!
Matt, you hit this one outta of the park!!! In SC growing up, we looked for the crawdad chimneys as well on the sides of the various bodies of water we fished. And, you are right, they are thick as fleas in the grass as well. 👍😃🎣🎣🎣🎣
Good stuff. I fish creeks and rivers almost exclusively and I always find a few crayfish before fishing for the day to see the colors. Gives me a good idea of what to fish and always interesting to see how they change throughout the year. Love your videos. Thank you
Great thought on continuing with the series. I had once seen a video on crayfish with why and how they change colors, packed with really good info and little tips that makes you want to learn more, this is no different and I hope what your doing encourages young minds to want to learn more, great stuff Matt!!
Hi Matt. Another great episode 👍. I have a tackle box of an assortment of crayfish, color and sizes. An episode of any tips or tricks how you would lure them up and fish them would be welcomed. I admit I don’t use them that much but should.
Excellent and useful. I have only been targeting bass in a comprehensive way for 14 months. Your lesson reinforces my experience. I ve used many colors and sizes in an effort to get it right. Example, last summer,2020, I had 5 LM bass in 40 minutes hit my greenish chartreuse tournament 3" craws. I'm stuck on the bank, limited. This year GP with red highlights was very effective in my craw profile. Last month I finally learned how to hookset with a football jig. So I am still trying to figure out colors.
Rusty crayfish live in the lakes around me, but I've never had luck throwing crayfish type lures. Do you have a favorite or recommended crayfish baits? Is there a better/worse time of year to use them?
Great tip Matt I use creeks around where I live in Tennessee and look at the colors of them and most of the time it helps really enjoy your videos Appreciate it 🙏
Crayfish question... I fish a small, 18 acre lake in Northern Michigan. The water is very dark and tannic, so you often can't see the bottom, which is muck throughout the lake... Do you think there are Crayfish? I've never seen any evidence of them in over 30 years, but the evidence would be hard to find.
Couldn't agree with you more- never understood guys who say dragging a jig around is a good winter tactic- the crawfish are hibernating then and the bass are not actively looking to feed on them. They're opportunistic though, if they see one I have no doubt they're gonna grab it anyway- which is why I think it works. Well, that and because it's easily mistaken for a bluegill- I use craw trailers on my swim jigs all the time to imitate bluegill and it works great. All that said- I've always had more luck with traditional baitfish imitations during winter like a swim bait or underspin. We start using jigs in spring and put them away come fall- because that's when the crawfish in my area are active.
You're insane! The BIGGEST BASS you'll catch will be on a jig in winter! Of course, I live in Alabama. We're still SWIMMING jigs when the rest of the country is iced up!
@@shadygraves I live in Alabama as well- and yeah, you're right- the biggest one you'll catch anytime of year down here will most likely be on a jig- but it's not a high percentage bait. I'll get 3-4 bites to your one fishing an underspin, swimbait, or a swim jig.
Thanks. I just ordered more crawfish baits that more closely resembles the Lousiana Reds we have here in Southern California. There is some very good videos out there that go in depth into this subject of crawfish.
All I know is, bass have great taste in cuisine... Bluegill, Perch, Crayfish... All delicious. Frogs, pretty good. Worms... Don't knock em til you try em!
Thanks for passing on the knowledge matt. I told myself that this year I would learn more about the forage at each lake and I’ve failed to dedicate the time to it. Side question- what’s left in the schedule for the year that you are looking forward to the most?
@@MattStefanFishing of course! Didn’t realize the title is in your backyard. You got this, you’ll smash them on the SLR. The big question is... will you be fishing for the win or for points?
Thanks for the insights on crayfish and bass fishing. Question, is there a favorite technique that you have had success with using simulated soft looking plastic crayfish lures. Some of them look so realistic. like the Huddleston soft crayfish for example. What is the best way to rig such a lure? Looking forward to your reply and from others with their own personal success stories.
The huddlestons are great and one I love to use on bedding fish. One of my all time favorites is the yamamoto hula grub and Dirty Jigs luke clausen compact pitchin jig with a 3" berkley pit boss.
Don’t forget crayfish molt during the full moon phase I tend to use more crayfish style baits more heavily during that timeframe with really good results
TOO MANY PEOPLE have it twisted. A bass doesn't give a DAMN what a lure is. He don't care if crawfish are molting, hibernating, or doing back flips. All he cares about is filling his gut and he's an opportunistic predator. If you put something in front of him and make it IRRESISTIBLE, he will do one of two things: eat it or go hungry...and he don't like to be hungry!
Great stuff! This year in the creeks and small rivers I fish for smallies the crayfish are such a lighter tan color that I've never seen in those waters and the fishing is slow..is it something as easy as switching around colors or is something bigger going on? Hopefully my question makes sense lol sorry
great video👏👏👏👏👏. been wondering about the color pattern of crayfish for awhile. was it season? water temp? surroundings? Look forward to more videos. I'm a new sub. thank you for your time
Matt, another amazing video. One question if I may, when we find crayfish in the livewell that was spat out by a bass, has the colour of the crayfish changed while in the stomach of the bass similarly as lobster do when they are immerged in hot water? Most of the time those crayfish are red. In other words, can the crayfish in the livewell gives a good indication of the colour of the bait I need to use?
IN my opinion the stomach acids have changed the crayfish shell color to a pink or red. Similar to when you cook shellfish. It generally turns red. So in my opinion I would not use the color of the crayfish in your livewell as a good indicator.
Not many crawdads around my area. It must be because it’s so sandy. When I lived a 45 minute drive west of here in the black land we had crawdads in all the small ponds that dried up every summer. I’ve stocked my farm pond many times with them and they disappear. I had a pond stocking guy tell me they have to burrow to reproduce and they can’t dig burrows in sand because it caves in. I don’t know if that’s true because we’d seine ponds and catch females all the time with babies under their tails.
@@MattStefanFishing its a night and day difference from where I live now and where I used to live. Seining and eating crawdads was one of our major pastimes when I was a kid. Crazy because it's not that far away. I've looked all around here for them so I can stock my pond with local native craws. The craws you buy to eat are Red Swamp Craws and they're invasive and destructive to native craws.
So during the super cold water periods when crawfish are hibernating, If you throw a crawfish type plastic does the Bass see it as out of place or does it see it as snack it’s be longing for because it’s a rare find? I would imagine it may think something is up with a crawfish being out during this period. Just curious your thoughts on this. Thanks in advance
I think the bass will eat it because they know what it is, but since they know there are few of them at that time of year they are probably not keying in on them and therefore in areas of the lake that the crayfish are not. In the north country the smallies will gorge on crayfish until the water gets cold and then switch over to cisco
@@MattStefanFishing excellent! Thanks so much for the reply. It’s super interesting to think about. For example If i have been eating sandwiches for days then all of a sudden I see a steak I would be like yeah but.... if that stakes laying in a bowl of salad in a dark room I probably would avoid lol. Thanks again 👊
I grew up in Louisiana. Here's 5 things you need to know about crayfish. 1. Louisiana lawmakers once passed legislation making "crawfish" the official name. 2. Louisiana produces about 100 million pounds of crawfish annually. 3. Crawfish can live underground where the water table is high. They build mud "chimneys" up to about a foot tall, and they can be anywhere from roadside ditches to lawns of million dollar homes, they don't care. 4. They eat almost anything, aquatic plants and animals, decaying plant and animal matter, plankton, and minerals in the mud. 5. Michael Murphy (you may know him from tournament trails) has a degree in fisheries biology and did extensive studies on crawfish. He has a couple of videos on RUclips that have really good information on crawfish including reasons for colors at different times of the year. I highly recommend them but they're about an hour long, so be ready to block out a chunk of time. Keep up the great tips, they're all really appreciated!
Matt, I ice fish, and at times (especially in mid February) I have seen female crayfish with eggs crawling on the ice!! What's up with that? Maybe searching for pickles and ice cream? 😂😂😂
I've seen them before ice out in Wisconsin on lakes that have a draw dawn in the spring. they lower the lake level to a point the holes they are hibernating in go dry and they are forced to come out and then die unfortunately.
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Love this series. How about a vid on baitfish? ESP the big balls we see in electronics. Thanks!!
Yep
Thanks Matt, very interesting and helpful.
Glad it was helpful!
Thanks Matt
yep!
Excellent video 👍
thanks!
Stroke of genius Matt. Rick Clunn says we need to study the prey to understand the predator. This is good intel. Thanks.
Thanks for watching!
Really great info as always, thanks Matt!
My pleasure!
Great teaching points on crayfish.
Glad it was helpful!
Excellent fishing info. Appreciated.
You bet
Thanks
Yep!
Very interesting. Fish the Mississippi a lot and have seen the small holes in the bank during low water and wondered what they were.
Crayfish!
Matt, I enjoyed your crayfish talk. I love to use a circle hook with a live softshell crayfish. The softshells must give off a different smell or light reflection because the bass can zero in on them. Question: what can i feed crayfish to get them to molt in my aquarium?
i have no clue
Thx.
you bet!
Matt, Randy Blaukat mentions you quite often and because of that I decided to check out your channel... I am so glad that he does or I would have missed all the excellent information you provide. Great channel and great information all the time. Thanks!
Awesome! Thank you!
Thats how i found you too, man what a great channel, go packers
Excellent idea for the series, you Sir are a fabulous teacher in the art of fishing, very good info and very precise. Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge with all of us and please continue with this series, very informative. Thanks and good luck.
Thank you very much!
One of the best videos you have done. Really enjoyed the subject matter. Please continue the series.
Thanks, will do!
Love me some crawdad fishing. They are all over Alabama. Great stuff, matt, love your vids. Be safe, matt
Glad you like them!
So what do jigs emulate in cold water when crayfish are hibernating?
A jig resembles a crayfish and bluegill quite well. Even though crayfish are hibernating doesn't mean a bass doesn't think a jig is a crayfish. It just means they are probably concentrating on other forage species.
There is always something to be learned in bass fishing! Thanks for the breakdown!
You got that right!
I wonder if that is the reason a small finesse jig works so well in the winter for me? Great stuff Matt.
Could be
Hi Matt, A few years back I was scouting Hubbard Lake in northern Mi, I was trolling in the deepest water that I could see the bottom. As I made my way around the south side I came across Crayfish Hatch! It seem that there were zillons of them. I called my friend who is teaching me how to fish for Bass. he said Wayne enjoy, take some pics, you just came across Crayfish Hatch. When I look up and there was Crayfish parts floating in deeper water. I realize that the Walleye and Smallies were feasting on them. He taught me sometimes you have to keep your rods at home and do some homework!! Without a doubt your channel is the best teaching channel. I Thank You for that! If Sponsors were smart, you should have you a fishing show! I really don't like to watch people catch fish after fish. We want to be taught!! I hope your Subscribers get on board!!
thanks so much for sharing your story and the channel support!
Matt, you hit this one outta of the park!!! In SC growing up, we looked for the crawdad chimneys as well on the sides of the various bodies of water we fished. And, you are right, they are thick as fleas in the grass as well. 👍😃🎣🎣🎣🎣
Thanks for watching!
Thank you Matt. I'm not sure how I missed this one. Very informative!
Glad it was helpful!
Good stuff. I fish creeks and rivers almost exclusively and I always find a few crayfish before fishing for the day to see the colors. Gives me a good idea of what to fish and always interesting to see how they change throughout the year. Love your videos. Thank you
Sounds great!
You are like a farmer cultivating the fishing intellect, great information! Looking forward to the series!
More to come!
Great thought on continuing with the series.
I had once seen a video on crayfish with why and how they change colors, packed with really good info and little tips that makes you want to learn more, this is no different and I hope what your doing encourages young minds to want to learn more, great stuff Matt!!
I hope so too!
Hi Matt. Another great episode 👍. I have a tackle box of an assortment of crayfish, color and sizes. An episode of any tips or tricks how you would lure them up and fish them would be welcomed. I admit I don’t use them that much but should.
Great idea
On the Cali Delta, the black mud sloughs have black crawdads with red spots. That's why black and red works so well there.
Awesome!
Very great info. Much appreciated. Didnt know how they are do many different colors. Thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Excellent and useful. I have only been targeting bass in a comprehensive way for 14 months. Your lesson reinforces my experience. I ve used many colors and sizes in an effort to get it right. Example, last summer,2020, I had 5 LM bass in 40 minutes hit my greenish chartreuse tournament 3" craws. I'm stuck on the bank, limited. This year GP with red highlights was very effective in my craw profile. Last month I finally learned how to hookset with a football jig. So I am still trying to figure out colors.
Great to hear! Stick with it!
Rusty crayfish live in the lakes around me, but I've never had luck throwing crayfish type lures. Do you have a favorite or recommended crayfish baits? Is there a better/worse time of year to use them?
Crayfish baits are better in the summer and I lie a Dirty Jig Luke CLausen compact jig
Great info, Matt 👊🏼 Enjoy this series of “5”.
More to come!
Great tip Matt I use creeks around where I live in Tennessee and look at the colors of them and most of the time it helps really enjoy your videos Appreciate it 🙏
Great to hear!
Excellent, the real deal! You’re channel is one of the best!
Wow, thanks!
Excellent topic!
Glad you enjoyed it
Thank you for the informations! Great series sir!
Glad you like them!
Love the "5 things to know" series.
I enjoy doing them!
cheers i was searching for aquarium crayfish
haha!
Once again, I learned something new. Thanks for sharing
Glad to hear it!
Very good info
Glad it was helpful!
Great tips. Now I know what created that little 1/4 hole.
Glad it was helpful!
Great info
Thanks!
Thanks Matt, great info!
Glad it was helpful!
Awesome series
THanks!
Crayfish question... I fish a small, 18 acre lake in Northern Michigan. The water is very dark and tannic, so you often can't see the bottom, which is muck throughout the lake... Do you think there are Crayfish? I've never seen any evidence of them in over 30 years, but the evidence would be hard to find.
i would bet yes. they dont need rock to live.
Great info thanks. Never knew about the hole in the bank here on the Mississippi River.
Look for them in the steeper mud banks. There are stretches with hundred of holes. Once you see them you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.
Great info. Keep the info coming, love it. Very helpful
Thanks for the continued support! You always got my back!
Great info thanks for sharing
Thanks for watching!
This is a great series, great idea. Keep it up
More to come!
Great info!
Glad it was helpful!
Another in a line of great tips!
Glad you like them!
Weeds n wood crawfish, lets see, EXACTLY the places you hammer the bass on?? JIGS which imitate? Crawfish, makes perfect sense..
Yes sir!
Great stuff man
Thanks!
Couldn't agree with you more- never understood guys who say dragging a jig around is a good winter tactic- the crawfish are hibernating then and the bass are not actively looking to feed on them. They're opportunistic though, if they see one I have no doubt they're gonna grab it anyway- which is why I think it works. Well, that and because it's easily mistaken for a bluegill- I use craw trailers on my swim jigs all the time to imitate bluegill and it works great. All that said- I've always had more luck with traditional baitfish imitations during winter like a swim bait or underspin. We start using jigs in spring and put them away come fall- because that's when the crawfish in my area are active.
great input! Thanks for sharing!
You're insane! The BIGGEST BASS you'll catch will be on a jig in winter! Of course, I live in Alabama. We're still SWIMMING jigs when the rest of the country is iced up!
@@shadygraves I live in Alabama as well- and yeah, you're right- the biggest one you'll catch anytime of year down here will most likely be on a jig- but it's not a high percentage bait. I'll get 3-4 bites to your one fishing an underspin, swimbait, or a swim jig.
Cool. Always good to info on forage. Thanks for the vid, look forward to them.
More to come!
Outstanding
thanks!
Thanks. I just ordered more crawfish baits that more closely resembles the Lousiana Reds we have here in Southern California. There is some very good videos out there that go in depth into this subject of crawfish.
Yep
All I know is, bass have great taste in cuisine... Bluegill, Perch, Crayfish... All delicious. Frogs, pretty good. Worms... Don't knock em til you try em!
they do!
Thanks for passing on the knowledge matt. I told myself that this year I would learn more about the forage at each lake and I’ve failed to dedicate the time to it.
Side question- what’s left in the schedule for the year that you are looking forward to the most?
MLF Pro Circuit Championship on Lacrosse. I just need a decent tournament at 1,000 islands.
@@MattStefanFishing of course! Didn’t realize the title is in your backyard. You got this, you’ll smash them on the SLR. The big question is... will you be fishing for the win or for points?
Minnesota. DNR said. Women lake Cass county. Full of rusty crawfish 🦞. They told me. Perch are chomping up on baby ones FYI.
Thanks for sharing
Thanks for the insights on crayfish and bass fishing. Question, is there a favorite technique that you have had success with using simulated soft looking plastic crayfish lures. Some of them look so realistic. like the Huddleston soft crayfish for example. What is the best way to rig such a lure? Looking forward to your reply and from others with their own personal success stories.
The huddlestons are great and one I love to use on bedding fish. One of my all time favorites is the yamamoto hula grub and Dirty Jigs luke clausen compact pitchin jig with a 3" berkley pit boss.
Don’t forget crayfish molt during the full moon phase I tend to use more crayfish style baits more heavily during that timeframe with really good results
Good tip!
TOO MANY PEOPLE have it twisted. A bass doesn't give a DAMN what a lure is. He don't care if crawfish are molting, hibernating, or doing back flips. All he cares about is filling his gut and he's an opportunistic predator. If you put something in front of him and make it IRRESISTIBLE, he will do one of two things: eat it or go hungry...and he don't like to be hungry!
Great stuff! This year in the creeks and small rivers I fish for smallies the crayfish are such a lighter tan color that I've never seen in those waters and the fishing is slow..is it something as easy as switching around colors or is something bigger going on? Hopefully my question makes sense lol sorry
I think water color has a lot to do with colors. But it also wouldnt surprise me if water contamination levels change their colors as well.
@@MattStefanFishing thanks Matt I appreciate it! Take care!
Great video. Glad I came across the channel. Subd!
Awesome, thank you!
@@MattStefanFishing Appreciate the wealth of knowledge you're willing to share!
Good video buddy
Thanks 👍
great video👏👏👏👏👏. been wondering about the color pattern of crayfish for awhile. was it season? water temp? surroundings? Look forward to more videos. I'm a new sub. thank you for your time
Awesome! Thanks for subscribing!
I live in central Ky, when do the craws turn soft?
In the spring when they are molting out of their old shell because they are growing.
Matt, another amazing video. One question if I may, when we find crayfish in the livewell that was spat out by a bass, has the colour of the crayfish changed while in the stomach of the bass similarly as lobster do when they are immerged in hot water? Most of the time those crayfish are red. In other words, can the crayfish in the livewell gives a good indication of the colour of the bait I need to use?
IN my opinion the stomach acids have changed the crayfish shell color to a pink or red. Similar to when you cook shellfish. It generally turns red. So in my opinion I would not use the color of the crayfish in your livewell as a good indicator.
@@MattStefanFishing Thank you. Having been born in the Canadian maritimes, my fore fathers being lobster fishermen, I guest that much.
Juvenile Crawfish do not hibernate.
They are out year around.
Adults start to hibernate when the water temp is 52-54° and less.
Thanks for sharing
Crawbabies.
yep!
We don't have Crayfish down here in Louisiana.....We have Crawfish. lol
Never heard of them haha
Do you ever use crayfish that have been forced to molt, so they have no shell? We use those on Lake Erie and have had great success.
I have never used them but have heard soft shell can be excellent
Not many crawdads around my area. It must be because it’s so sandy. When I lived a 45 minute drive west of here in the black land we had crawdads in all the small ponds that dried up every summer. I’ve stocked my farm pond many times with them and they disappear. I had a pond stocking guy tell me they have to burrow to reproduce and they can’t dig burrows in sand because it caves in. I don’t know if that’s true because we’d seine ponds and catch females all the time with babies under their tails.
Interesting. Ive seen plenty of lakes that are all sand and they do just fine.
@@MattStefanFishing its a night and day difference from where I live now and where I used to live. Seining and eating crawdads was one of our major pastimes when I was a kid. Crazy because it's not that far away. I've looked all around here for them so I can stock my pond with local native craws. The craws you buy to eat are Red Swamp Craws and they're invasive and destructive to native craws.
So during the super cold water periods when crawfish are hibernating, If you throw a crawfish type plastic does the Bass see it as out of place or does it see it as snack it’s be longing for because it’s a rare find? I would imagine it may think something is up with a crawfish being out during this period. Just curious your thoughts on this. Thanks in advance
I think the bass will eat it because they know what it is, but since they know there are few of them at that time of year they are probably not keying in on them and therefore in areas of the lake that the crayfish are not. In the north country the smallies will gorge on crayfish until the water gets cold and then switch over to cisco
@@MattStefanFishing excellent! Thanks so much for the reply. It’s super interesting to think about. For example If i have been eating sandwiches for days then all of a sudden I see a steak I would be like yeah but.... if that stakes laying in a bowl of salad in a dark room I probably would avoid lol. Thanks again 👊
I grew up in Louisiana. Here's 5 things you need to know about crayfish.
1. Louisiana lawmakers once passed legislation making "crawfish" the official name.
2. Louisiana produces about 100 million pounds of crawfish annually.
3. Crawfish can live underground where the water table is high. They build mud "chimneys" up to about a foot tall, and they can be anywhere from roadside ditches to lawns of million dollar homes, they don't care.
4. They eat almost anything, aquatic plants and animals, decaying plant and animal matter, plankton, and minerals in the mud.
5. Michael Murphy (you may know him from tournament trails) has a degree in fisheries biology and did extensive studies on crawfish. He has a couple of videos on RUclips that have really good information on crawfish including reasons for colors at different times of the year. I highly recommend them but they're about an hour long, so be ready to block out a chunk of time.
Keep up the great tips, they're all really appreciated!
Thanks for the info! Michael Murphy's stuff is great.
Rip the pincers off of the rubber baits my link got removed again..
I also like to eat crawdads. Lol
Haha! Me too!
Finally someone who calls them by the proper name. Lol
haha!
Matt, I ice fish, and at times (especially in mid February) I have seen female crayfish with eggs crawling on the ice!! What's up with that? Maybe searching for pickles and ice cream? 😂😂😂
I've seen them before ice out in Wisconsin on lakes that have a draw dawn in the spring. they lower the lake level to a point the holes they are hibernating in go dry and they are forced to come out and then die unfortunately.
All the way up to people. Nothing like a 40lb sack of achafalaya crawfish.
I love a good crawdad boil!
Good stuff as always Matt thanks for sharing your experience!
you bet!