Do You Know What a Bass’s First Meal Is? Michael Murphy Does.
By Derrek Stewart 9/15/2017, re-edited 2/26/2024
Enter the C-Pod Creature Bait by Reins. C-Pod is short for
Copepods and is the premise behind lure designer Michael Murphy’s creature bait.
Murphy is a fishing guide and professional tournament angler with an Aquatic
Fisheries Science degree. This combination provides Murphy with a unique perspective when he designs lures.
A Fish’s First Food
Immediately after a largemouth bass hatches from its yoke
sack, for the first six to eight weeks, its food source is microscopic Copepods.
Copepods, or C-Pod for short, are small crustaceans. They are found in the
ocean and throughout almost every
freshwater habitat.
Microscopic Copepods
Murphy explains, “When you examine images of Copepods and
compare them to bass fishing creature baits,
the similarities aren’t a coincidence.” “A bass
as it matures most likely has a memory imprint of Copepods.” The bass grew; how
does it know that Copepods don’t grow too?
Catch a Predator,
Study its Prey
Reins baits utilize a shrimp scent. This smell adds another
level of realism to the deception. Murphy explains that during his Aquaculture
fish studies, he used additives to entice bass to eat. “Shrimp and squid scents
are extremely effective on freshwater
bass.” Remember, Copepods are crustaceans.
Rein’s C-Pod baits
At 4” in length,
the shrimp-scented Rein’s C-Pod is available in various colors. Shrimp, like
Copepods, are also a crustacean,
explaining the success of shrimp-scented soft baits on bass.
For anglers looking to gain confidence, presenting lures with
a genetic imprint on fish should provide assurance. There are multiple ways to
rig the Reins’ C-Pod. The rigging methods and techniques an angler can present
are as diverse as their imagination.
Here is how Murphy likes to present the C-Pod. “With a very
light 1/4 or 1/8 oz. bullet weight Texas rig, swimming the lure and
occasionally allowing the C-Pod to make contact with the bottom.” “I’ve also
caught bass drop-shotting this bait, but
swimming the Texas set-up is my preferred technique.”
More Food For Thought:
Creature Baits and Tubes
Rotifers
Rotifers, much like Copepods, are also microscopic swimming
planktonic animals. They differ from Copepods because their bodies have a
distinct ‘tube’ shape. Anglers know Smallmouth Bass have a reputation for
favoring tube baits.
A Copepod is to a Largemouth
like a Rotifer is to a Smallie. “A Rotifer is the first food source for
smallmouth bass.” We also know that
typically, Smallmouth Bass prefer current/moving water, and Largemouth
generally prefer calmer/still water. You will typically find Copepods in calm
water; you guessed it, Rotifers prefer moving water. Do smallmouth bass consider that those tube baits are a larger
Rotifer, just like a largemouth views creature baits?
Murphy engaged in field
studies
When Murphy isn’t studying aquatic science and designing
lures for Reins and IMA, you can find him competing on upper-echelon tournament
trails or professionally guiding on Lake Murray, South Carolina, as a Coast
Guard-approved Captain.
Nice Field Office
“Many anglers may only consider what fish eat today, missing
what they once ate while growing and still recognize as a food source. This
missed food source can expand lure selection and presentations when fish are picky.”
– Michael Murphy.
Murphy on
the Tournament Trail
Michael Murphy, thank you for
sharing your expertise and passion. It’s a pleasure to listen to a well-studied,
science-based angling perspective.
