Postspawn bass

well its a bit late but there are still a few fish in the post spawn stages I'm sure. most of the past spawn happened in mid to late march. i suspect that the actual spawn was in late january to late febuary this year. the high muddy water from the storms kept most of the spawn a secret except for a few tidbits of info garnered from catches. the post spawn is a short transition period after the spawn. the bass, starting with the females will move off the nest after they have released all of their eggs. this usually takes 1-3 days depending on conditions. the males will stay behind to guard the nest and protect the fry. the eggs should hatch after a week and the male will continue to guard the nest for awhile longer, perhaps a week or so. the females move off to the same areas occupied in the pre spawn. secondary points and cover or structure located close by to the spawning areas. often to catch a few all you have to do is back off the bank and search a bit deeper, perhaps just around the mouths of coves. they don't go far so you don't have to search and search to find them. its simple as locating where they are spawning or were spawning, then look for the nearest fish holding spots in deeper water providing forage. the females will often gorge for a bit to regain strength from the spawn. they won't be schooled up yet, often very scattered actually. but you still have a chance to get a "HAWG" under the right circumstances and conditions. within a week or so the females will move off into more of a summer haunt and the now starving males will be taking up residence in the same locations. i have found that the males tend to group up a bit more than the females. catch one female and after a few casts id move on but if i get a male i really work the area. often i can get 3-4 males in a short time within a short distance. during this period the fish will be very finicky, often a very slow methodical approach and slow bottom bumping lures will be a must. however for whatever reason, I'm assuming they are starving after the spawn and weeks of not feeding. they can come to life briefly and a faster reaction bait can really be the ticket. as far as knowing what to throw and when. welllllllll thats where you have to be prepared and try different things till you luck into something. personally id start with a texas rigged worm or perhaps a drop shot, maybe even a shakeyhead. and id keep a crankbait or spinnerbait at the ready on another setup. if the slow is producing then fine but if its not, run and gun a bit of the bank and try various depths. there will be a lot of trial and error to find the fish at this time of the year, but the rewards can be well worth the work!