Open reservoirs, tributary mouths, tailwaters. Schools in current seams.
DIET
Shad, minnows, small crustaceans. Feeds by sight, in schools.
BEST BAITS
Rooster Tails · Spoons · Live minnows
SEASONAL PATTERN
BEST🌱SPRING
☀️SUMMER
🍂FALL
❄️WINTER
Summer: Schools chase shad in open water.
ANGLER INTEL · RIGHT NOWSCOUT & ADAPT
DEPTH
10–20 ft
transition breaks
TIMING
First & last light
TOP LURE · LURE
Blade baits
moderate conditions — work the cover
TACKLE
Medium spinning, 6–10 lb line
TECHNIQUE · Slow-rolled jig or suspending jerkbait — 3 twitches, long pause
ANGLER STATS
SPAWN 54–68°F
BITE
78
FIGHT
62
STEALTH
35
FUN FACT
A female can carry 500,000 eggs. The spawn run has males arriving days before the females — and the whole show can shift two weeks either way on water temp alone.
STATUS
Secure
Native · Moronidae
LIVE PFG SIGNAL48°F · Bull Shoals Lake● SCOUT 58
YOUR CARD · ACTIONSNOT YET COLLECTED
🪪 ID marks
Silver sides
6–8 horizontal stripes
Small mouth
Two dorsal fins
💡 Tips
Find the school — find the run
Match shad size
First & last light
🌙 Lunar profile
HIGH Lunar ImpactBest phases: Full Moon, New Moon
☀️ Daytime
Target baitfish schools in open water. Full Moon concentrates shad in coves — follow sonar marks toward shallow flats.
🌙 Nighttime
Aggressive topwater bite under Full Moon. Cast around dock lights and bright shoreline areas. White or chrome lures.