no spawn in chicago area yet

[Bladerunner]

at least the lakes ive been fishing, (water still seems on the cool side, feels about 58 deg.)

now i have a question
.. do bass start guarding their potential nests/beds before they lay their eggs? reason being, the lake i fish is quite clear so you can see the bass just sitting there and if they are moving, their only moving in a 8 ft' diameter or so around that area, and constantly chasin away any blugills or anything else that swim close to that area. and it doesnt even look like hes trying to eat 'em he just scarin em away.

[Rich]

That is a fish guarding the nest. They may have not started spawning yet, but they are getting ready. Try throwing a Rat-L-Trap into the deeper water near the nest-you may get one of the big girls that are feeding getting ready to spawn. You probably won't get one of those on the nest to bite out of hunger-you need to make them mad. A lizard or soft plastic craw can do the trick. There is a "sweet spot" on the nest that they really protect. If you can drag your bait in there that can trigger a strike, but you may have to make multiple casts-I once worked on fish for 45 minutes, cast after cast, until I finally made him mad enough to hit the bait.

[Bladerunner]

yea i kinda had a feeling that's what they were doing, guarding a nest. i tried the lizards, ill have to go back and just keep working it in there, i didnt spend too much time that day.