With bass slowing down as water temperatures increase it becomes important to offer them baits in a color and size that encourages a strike. (Steve Knight/Tyler Morning Telegraph)

Undoubtedly this spring’s rains will soon turn into this summer’s heat, and as it does bass fishing is going to tough.

That’s not a prediction or guess, it is a reality that occurs year after year in Texas as lake water surface temperatures climb and bass go deeper in search of more comfortable temperatures.

It is a transition that follows the May-June bream spawn, and can continue until the fall water cool-down.

According to a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department bass tracking study conducted over two years on lakes Fork and Toledo Bend, bass do move as the water warms, but not always into the deepest depths.

“By the numbers and data, we did see fish move into deeper water during the summer months, but overall it was not a substantial difference, let alone a statistically significant one,” explained Jake Norman, TPWD Inland Fisheries district biologist from Tyler who was part of the study.

The study showed on Lake Fork bass moved from an average depth of 2.9 feet in the spring to 4.2 in the summer. On Toledo Bend it was 4.7 to 6.3.

Norman said the depths probably seem shallower than what fishermen would suspect, but considers all the fish tracked throughout the study.

“We had several fish in both reservoirs that remained shallow all year. Most of these fish remained in the same pocket all year, and simply moved from the bank to a drop off to a drain to the mouth of the pocket,” he said.

While those fish brought the average depth down they do highlight the seasonal water depth usage and show that bass move deeper in the summer.

Norman added the summer bite slow-down is a real thing, and that there is science behind it.

“One thing to consider about fish during the hottest temps of the summer, is their metabolism is at its highest of the year. In other words, bass need to eat more in the summer months to maintain body mass more than any other time of the year,” Norman said.

But in nature there is always a but, and there are several with summer bass including dissolved oxygen and water temperature preferences in a lake.

“Just because a bass needs to eat, doesn’t mean it’s automatically aggressive. When the thermocline sets in, there is a very small band of tolerable water for deep bass, which increases stress levels and results in more sluggish fish. They do eat a lot when it’s hot out, but if you don’t find them when they are feeding, they are very sluggish and challenging to catch,” Norman added.

This of course gives the fish the advantage, but there are things fishermen can do.

Casey Sobczak, founder of Texas-based 6th Sense Fishing, recommends the age-old practice of matching the food source the fish are after.

For at least the remainder of June bream are going to be bedding on Texas lakes, making them the prime target for hungry bass.

“Bluegill-color baits like chartreuse, green pumpkin, redbug, blue and plum work best,” Sobczak said.

After the bream quit spawning, he said that bluegill colors can continue to work, but so will shad colors as those baitfish begin to ball up on lakes.

“I don’t think colors change too much. If you are fishing cranks you want to use chartreuse colors in May and June, and as shad balls up you want to use colors like chartreuse and white,” Sobczak said.

He is also a fan of big baits, like 6th Sense’s Boosa 10-inch Ribbon Tail or some of the big swim baits for deeper fish.

“Offshore they seem to want a big meal. Their metabolism is working more so they want to use their energy more to feed on something big,” Sobczak said. He recommends the worms like the Devine Shakey Head, Bamboosa, and Boosa around brush and other cover.

There are also top water options including frogs for bass that stay shallow.

As for fishing speed, Sobczak suggests fishing fast around schools of shad, but slowing the retrieve when the water is stained.