Rock bass are easy to catch

Al Lowe
Contributor

This is the smallest of three major basses. Most serious bass fishermen don’t have much respect for this small member. It is, however, much beloved by young folk learning to fish. It is quite easy to catch, and will take as bait almost anything.
The top part of this fish is coloured olive to brown with dark blotches. Each scale along the sides usually has a dark spot, which gives the fish the appearance of having several lines of spots. One feature which distinguishes it from other members of the sunfish family is its bright red eye. In many places, it is called Redeye.
As its name suggests, it is often found where there are rocks, old stumps, or other types of cover. It seems to prefer shallow water in lakes and slow-moving streams, where the water is fairly warm.
As with the other two basses, family matters are the responsibility of the male. He clears out a dish-shaped area - this time about the size of a soup bowl. The female lays only a few eggs at a time, fertilized at once by milt from the male. Spawning often takes at least an hour. The female then goes on her carefree way. The male, as with other basses, guards the eggs and the young. The Rock Bass is a very prolific fish, the female laying from 5 to 10 thousand eggs at one go. No danger of this fish disappearing from our waters yet.
Rock Bass occur naturally in the major water systems of eastern North America - the St. Lawrence, the Mississippi, and also the Hudson Bay and Red River systems of Manitoba (which includes a lot of Northwestern Ontario). In the U.S. it is plentiful as far south as the Gulf of Mexico.
They are caught commercially in some of the Great Lakes, along with Crappies and other types of sunfish. The commercial catch is not very large, compared with other members of the family. The Rock Bass (Ambloplites rupestis) is the delight of the schoolboy. It is easy to catch, responding to almost any kind of lure, real or man-made. Casting, trolling, still-fishing - all work with this fellow. As far as serious anglers are concerned, they often consider the Rock Bass a nuisance. Since they tend to hang around with other sunfish, particularly Smallmouths. The man after Smallmouths will often get several Rocks in between each of the ones he is really after.
This is a fairly small fish, with most of those caught being about 6 to 8 inches in length, rarely weighting more than half a pound. There are cases, though, of some being 1, 1 1/2 or even 2 pounds, but they are few and far between. The flesh of this small fish is very good - quite firm and sweet. However, the chore of getting it ready for the table usually makes the angler look for the larger species.
The Rock Bass is a gamey little fish who puts up a good fight, and his eating quaIities, often overlooked, are very good. Your kids will have a lot of fun with him.