March in Texas means white bass (also known as sand bass) in Texas. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) published a article about the white bass race. He said: “Due to the dry summer, some rivers and reservoirs in Texas are experiencing low water levels and low flows, which could affect the timing of the white bass run.” So the Texas BHA contacted anglers across the state to get their spawning report for the upcoming spring fishing season.

DFW – Nathan Clinkscales is an angler in the DFW area who specifically targets white bass on the fly. Nathan fishes for white bass spawning annually and says spawning is close. “If the water temperature rises another five degrees, it will be on. The fish are piling up at the mouths of the streams along the sandy flats, waiting,” Nathan said. He added that he predicts that the spawning peak in his area will be the third week of March. Nathan suggests casting a chartreuse or white clouser minnow for white bass in his area.

Houston metropolitan area – Chris Smith of Houston said that the spawning of white bass is about to start. He has been fishing for the last few weeks. It’s been colder with water temperatures in the upper 40s; warmer temperatures next week will kick off spawning. Right now, very patchy in random holes. Chris is fishing for black/chartreuse or chartreuse/white roadrunner with ultralight rods.

central texas – Grahame Jones, a fishing guide in the Austin area, said he is seeing some good pre-spawning activity with fish crowding the creek mouths. People are catching a decent amount of white bass on small crankbaits. He mentioned the lower water levels in the Hill Country, but he believed the spawn was knocking on the door. “It will really depend a lot on the flow of the river and the spring rains,” he said. He stated that the ideal water temperature that he is looking for is 55 to 60 degrees to increase spawning and he believes that the spawning peak for central Texas could be 3^rd or 4^he week of March this year. Grahame hinted at fishing for spawning with plenty of walk-in access in the creeks around Summerville Lake. He also mentioned that his favorite flies to cast for white bass are the small rabbit hair minnows.

north texas – After speaking with several anglers in and around North Texas, it appears that the cooler temperatures have prevented spawning from really starting. Ryan Reed of Wichita Falls said it would take a real warming of the water in the lakes for spawning to begin. He thinks it could be within a few weeks, with the peak coming around the third week of March. It seems that rattlesnake traps are preferred in North Texas.

These are just a few reports from other BHA members across the state. If you are looking for more reports in your area, you can always consult the TPWD Fish Report page. We hope you are excited about what looks to be the start of a great spring spawning season in Texas. If you would like to submit a spawn report from your local area, please email us at [email protected].