How aggressive are bed-guarding male smallmouth?
Famously the most aggressive nest defenders among the black bass. A guarding male smallmouth charges and bites intruders far larger than anything it would eat — crayfish, gobies, sunfish, even divers' fingers and camera housings get attacked. The drive is hormonal territory defense, not feeding, which is why guarders hit lures they would coldly inspect at any other time of year. That same fearlessness is exactly what makes them so catchable — and so vulnerable — on beds, which is why spring closures exist in much of their northern range.
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This answer is one piece of a longer lesson — setups, diagrams and the reasoning behind it.
More questions about Territory & aggression
Same topic, other species
- Why do crappie nest in colonies instead of spreading out like bass? — Crappie
- Do largemouth defend a territory outside of the spawn? — Largemouth Bass
- Are muskie territorial? — Muskellunge (Muskie)
- Are perch territorial at all? — Yellow Perch
- Do pike defend territories? — Northern Pike
- Is there really a pecking order among trout in a pool? — Trout (Rainbow · Brook · Lake)
- Are walleye territorial? — Walleye