Bass with red lips 2025
the reel ess reply :
Is this because they're eating crawfish? Or is it due to some other factor (water temp)? I see this a lot in early season bass. I caught two today and both had red lips.
Team9nine reply :
I'm sure you'll get a lot of theories on this, especially the crawfish eating connection. It definitely seems to be most prevalent in colder water temps from early winter through very early spring. That said, I've spoken to several of the leading fish physiology experts in the country about this, and none of them knew about this condition and could only speculate as to why, the predominant opinion being hormonally related due to season. I've done a few experiments myself to try and tease out an answer, but to date, have largely come up empty.
Edit: Here is a previous comment clarifying the subject a bit. I'm sure Paul will chime in when he sees this thread as he’s got the best take on the subject at the moment:
"We’re still trying to figure this one out. The main person to start the “red lips/teeth” inquiry was Paul Roberts in Colorado. He and I have been in contact trying to figure it out, and we have theories and anecdotal evidence, but nothing exact yet. It definitely seems to be related to cold water, the colder the greater the degree of red, and Paul suspects it might be hormonal. As temps warm, redness fades. Very prominent immediately after ice-out. I contacted one of the best in LMB physiology and spoke with him about it and he had no idea either, suspecting length of fight might come into play (we've tested and shot that theory down). We were hoping we might intrigue him enough to study it, but nothing yet. Fairly safe to say it is not related to spawning or crayfish eating, IMO. I’ve even run some tests by putting bass from warmer water that didn’t show the red much into severely iced down livewell water (at 32-33 deg. F) and held them for a couple hours to see if that would cause the red to return, but it didn’t. This is partly why we believe it might be hormonal in nature."
-T9
the reel ess reply :
On 1/31/2016 at 5:42 AM, Team9nine said:I'm sure you'll get a lot of theories on this, especially the crawfish eating connection. It definitely seems to be most prevalent in colder water temps from early winter through very early spring. That said, I've spoken to several of the leading fish physiology experts in the country about this, and none of them knew about this condition and could only speculate as to why, the predominant opinion being hormonally related due to season. I've done a few experiments myself to try and tease out an answer, but to date, have largely come up empty.
-T9
I've heard, but only anecdotally, that it's from crushing craws that emerge as the first easy source of protein for winter bass. It's been quite a while since I caught a bass on anything that didn't resemble a craw at least a little. But that's not evidence.
Team9nine reply :
On 1/31/2016 at 5:48 AM, the reel ess said:I've heard, but only anecdotally, that it's from crushing craws that emerge as the first easy source of protein for winter bass. It's been quite a while since I caught a bass on anything that didn't resemble a craw at least a little. But that's not evidence.
Updated my original reply, so check that out. Hopefully Paul will drop by and fill in more details...to me, at least, craw crushing makes no sense because it's the back "crushers" that do the work and not the "lips." Additionally, you would think that bass that feed on craws all year long or at other times of the year would display this tendency, but it seems limited to cold water periods.
-T9
Wayne P. reply :
I was involved with that topic also and sent Paul several photos of red lips a lot brighter red than above.
PitchinJigz reply :
On 1/31/2016 at 5:54 AM, Team9nine said:Updated my original reply, so check that out. Hopefully Paul will drop by and fill in more details...to me, at least, craw crushing makes no sense because it's the back "crushers" that do the work and not the "lips." Additionally, you would think that bass that feed on craws all year long or at other times of the year would display this tendency, but it seems limited to cold water periods.
-T9
What I always thought was that it's not because of eating crawfish, but because of feeding on bottom. I've been told when they go to feed on crawfish, their lips crape against rocks, etc which makes their lips raw and red.
Goose52 reply :
I see it every winter - usually starting when the surface water temp gets into the 40s...
A-Jay reply :
On 1/31/2016 at 7:06 AM, Goose52 said:I see it every winter - usually starting when the surface water temp gets into the 40s...
Maybe it's chapped lips ~
A-Jay
Big C reply :
On 1/31/2016 at 8:03 AM, A-Jay said:Maybe it's chapped lips ~
A-Jay
X2
He probably bought tinted lip balm on accident.
the reel ess reply :
On 1/31/2016 at 6:36 AM, PitchinJigz said:What I always thought was that it's not because of eating crawfish, but because of feeding on bottom. I've been told when they go to feed on crawfish, their lips crape against rocks, etc which makes their lips raw and red.
I haven't found any rocky bottom where I fished today. And my pic doesn't show the redness as it really looked. It was brighter red.
gardnerjigman reply :
I've always assumed the crawfish thing. Related to the wart bite in cold water. Bait fish chasers usually have sharp teeth and crawfish eaters are red. That's my theory and I'm sticking to it. Lol
Paul Roberts reply :
I recently started a thread called "Red Teeth 2" highlighting a Youtube video of a bunch of bass caught through the ice, with scarlet red tooth pads. It was pulled bc it had some promotional content I wasn't aware of. Anyway, here's a thread where we discuss the phenomenon at some length:
One things for sure, old myths (such as crayfish munching) die hard. I think that one can safely be put to rest. Something physiological is happening.
There was a discussion about red teeth on the PondBoss site and the assumption by the Mod's there was cold stress and the word "disease" was even used. But I think it's probably a natural response to cold -possibly to ward off cold stress -possibly related to the enlarged hearts John (J Francho) mentions in the original thread.
The red is on all tooth pads (see Goose's pic above) and can even extend to capillaries beneath the skin along the belly, the fin bases, and in particular the pectoral girdle (throat area). This is only evident in the very coldest water -like right at ice out, or as I could see in that video, under the ice. This super-cold water red isn't just 'red', it's... 'scarlet-red'.
ww2farmer reply :
I'm going with.............it's a cold water thing..............I see it every year here in early spring from ice out until the water gets into the 50's, then it vanishes. It seems like it comes back in late fall too.
Paul Roberts reply :
On 2/1/2016 at 12:44 AM, ww2farmer said:I'm going with.............it's a cold water thing..............
Me too.
BaitMonkey1984 reply :
I believe because they are eating crawfish. Thats what I thought and when its red, I use red crankbaits and do pretty darn well.
corn-on-the-rob reply :
In my opinion, it seems to be too symmetrical to be attributed to a physical interaction with forage/surrounding environment. Obviously blood carries essential nutrients to every capillary/crevice it flows into, and maybe the colder thicker blood almost lingers in these small areas it is forced in to.
Just a thought.
Evan K reply :
I always thought it was from eating craws as well.
This was reinforced to me because I caught 2 LMB with a craw imitating jig, and both had red crush plates. Whereas in the small pond where I almost never see crawfish and certainly have never caught a fish with one, I never see the red.
Could be just circumstance I guess.
the reel ess reply :
I catch fish on craw lures year-round, but the red lips phenomenon ends when water warms. Could be the combination of both are required. It could be that bass finally feel warm enough to chase other forage.
Paul Roberts reply :
.
Scarborough817 reply :
On 1/31/2016 at 10:42 AM, gardnerjigman said:I've always assumed the crawfish thing. Related to the wart bite in cold water. Bait fish chasers usually have sharp teeth and crawfish eaters are red. That's my theory and I'm sticking to it. Lol
i agree i notice this on most fish in my lake i catch seems to have very red lips even in the middle of summer i don't really believe the whole season thing
ArizonaFishing reply :
I caught a bass today with red lips. There are no craws in this body of water. Also water temps are very low right now. Rocky bottom, mid January
12poundbass reply :
For me we've come full circle with the thread about new members reviving old threads. I've never seen this thread and found it very interesting and I'm glad it was revived! Thank you!
BassWhole! reply :
On 1/31/2016 at 8:08 AM, Big C said:X2
He probably bought tinted lip balm on accident.
Two male bass are hanging out under a lay down when one notices the other has red lips, and asks "what's up with that?, oh that's lipsticks answers the first one, when did you start wearing lipstick? when my wife found it in the car" answered the first sheepishly.
Seriously, I've also noticed this is very common in winter and early spring, haven't found a definitive answer. crunching craws or other eating or nesting injuries don't make sense to me.
LionHeart reply :
Their lips are chapped. Happens to me too when it gets cold????
scbassin reply :
Or maybe the water is starting to warm & moving toward spawning & the females get all dolled up & are wearing red lipstick, just a thought.
FishDewd reply :
I was told by an old timer once that its a sign of approaching pre-spawn.
CrankFate reply :
All I know is it is disappointing that science knows so little about such well known fish. There are more fishermen who know more about fish than scientists.
kenmitch reply :
Them are the one's waiting for a kiss from Jimmy Houston or some other legend in the industry.
Koz reply :
On 1/31/2016 at 8:03 AM, A-Jay said:Maybe it's chapped lips ~
A-Jay
"Honey, does this shade of red make my bass look too big?"
the reel ess reply :
On 1/16/2019 at 6:25 AM, ArizonaFishing said:I caught a bass today with red lips. There are no craws in this body of water. Also water temps are very low right now. Rocky bottom, mid January
I'd bet there are craws there. I fished my home lake for more than 30 years, even lived there for years, before ever seeing a crawfish there. The only one I ever saw was in a fish.
But I doubt that's the reason for the red in the mouth. I agree with you that it's water temp related. Bass eat craws year-round. but they don't keep the red lips. My theory is their body moves blood toward the lips to help them feed in winter because they're cold blooded creatures.
the reel ess reply :
On 1/16/2019 at 6:50 AM, 12poundbass said:For me we've come full circle with the thread about new members reviving old threads. I've never seen this thread and found it very interesting and I'm glad it was revived! Thank you!
Me too. Because it was one I started. 3 years old now.
ArizonaFishing reply :
On 1/17/2019 at 12:39 AM, the reel ess said:I'd bet there are craws there. I fished my home lake for more than 30 years, even lived there for years, before ever seeing a crawfish there. The only one I ever saw was in a fish.
But I doubt that's the reason for the red in the mouth. I agree with you that it's water temp related. Bass eat craws year-round. but they don't keep the red lips. My theory is their body moves blood toward the lips to help them feed in winter because they're cold blooded creatures.
There are no craws. It's a seasonal stocked pond. Was dry 3 months ago. I put the bass there.
OCdockskipper reply :
You would be surprised where crayfish show up. In areas that dry up seasonally, the crayfish burrow deep enough to get in dirt (mud) that still has moisture in it. When the pond refills, they come out of their burrows.
I saw this first hand on the creek that runs from the dam at Canyon Lake into Lake Elsinore. For much of the year, especially during the summer, the area is just a dry creekbed. As a teen, my uncle took me there one June day, and had me help him flip over the largest boulders we could handle. Sure enough, you could see the burrows, some inches deep, some a couple of feet deep. Most of the burrows had multiple crayfish in them.
the reel ess reply :
On 1/30/2019 at 9:47 AM, ArizonaFishing said:There are no craws. It's a seasonal stocked pond. Was dry 3 months ago. I put the bass there.
They are routinely found in ditches that dry up seasonally
TnRiver46 reply :
I didn't know there was water without crawdads. Then again I have only been to Arizona briefly and it was snowing
Khmcmillan reply :
In South Texas. We caught two from a small pond that had these red lips. Our lakes and ponds never freeze and these guys were still sporting the lipstick. Figured I'd put my two cents in from another state.
Quick32 reply :
I’ve caught 20+ this spring with red mouth. But the bigger ones don’t have it. ?
burr56 reply :
Just an off the wall thought. Has anyone looked into whether crawdads get redder colored in colder water, maybe there's something there to see or maybe eliminate? Burr
jbsoonerfan reply :
On 1/30/2019 at 10:47 AM, OCdockskipper said:You would be surprised where crayfish show up. In areas that dry up seasonally, the crayfish burrow deep enough to get in dirt (mud) that still has moisture in it. When the pond refills, they come out of their burrows.
I saw this first hand on the creek that runs from the dam at Canyon Lake into Lake Elsinore. For much of the year, especially during the summer, the area is just a dry creekbed. As a teen, my uncle took me there one June day, and had me help him flip over the largest boulders we could handle. Sure enough, you could see the burrows, some inches deep, some a couple of feet deep. Most of the burrows had multiple crayfish in them.
When I was a kid (9-12) I could catch crawdads in my front yard after a big rain on a piece of string and bacon, They were so much fun to catch. When I could walk to the creeks and catch them I was so excited.
The Bassman reply :
On 4/11/2019 at 12:19 PM, jbsoonerfan said:When I was a kid (9-12) I could catch crawdads in my front yard after a big rain on a piece of string and bacon, They were so much fun to catch. When I could walk to the creeks and catch them I was so excited.
We did exactly the same thing in the drainage ditch behind our house. Our side yard is full of "mud volcanoes" right now. Wonder what my neighbor would think about a 65 year old man dangling a string in them?
Dude87 reply :
Hey guys, I wanted to add to this thread. I looked it up because I caught 2 large-mouth with crawdad imitations when nothing was biting. Both had red lips and I thought that was weird. Not so hard to believe when you consider flamingos are born gray and then turn pink after eating shrimp. Maybe the same dye in shrimp is found in crawdads.
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