Spring

• Calico bass congregate around submerged brush piles and downed trees in the spring before and during the spawning period. When brush or timber is absent from a lake or slow-moving river, you can find calico bass near docks, weed beds and rocky bottoms. Rremain quiet when fishing for crappies because they are wary and frighten easily. The lures and baits that work effectively include tiny jigs, tubes, spinnerbaits and live bait such as minnows and shiners.
  
  The simplest way to catch these spring calicos is to rig a pole with light monofilament test line and attach a bobber 2 feet above a small panfish hook. The best method to catch calicos is by tipping the hook with a minnow or a small piece of worm and casting it around likely spots until crappies bite. Once a school has been located, the angler can catch many crappies this way.
  
  

Summer

• The places that were calico bass hot spots in the spring cool down as the summer heats up. This is when the calicos move into much deeper and cooler waters. The serious calico bass angler will employ a fish finder to find these suspended schools of fish. Then he will use fishing weights to be able to lower her lures and baits down to the level where the crappies are. Calico bass tend to stay farther off the bottom than other species. This makes it easier for electronic fish finders to pinpoint them.
  
  If an angler lacks sophisticated equipment, he is going to have to find calicos by trial and error. Using small spoons with treble hooks in the deeper parts of lakes and reservoirs is a start. A great aid is a topographical map of the lake. This can show deep water and the type of cover that calicos prefer. This includes features such as rocky bottoms and areas where the water gets deep quickly close to the shore.
  
  

Ice Fishing

• In the early and late winter, calicos can be found in the shallow parts of inlets and lakes. Often, they will be in less than 15-foot water, which is still much deeper than similar panfish such as bluegill. In the dead of winter, though, the calicos migrate to the deepest parts of lakes. The same things that help the summer calico angler find crappies can be of assistance in these times. Fish finders and topographical lake maps identify the deep points. Even though the fish are in the deepest water, they tend to swim higher up off the bottom than other types of fish.
  
  Calico bass can often be caught on tip-ups rigged with a light line and small minnows. This method is not as effective as using a jigging rod. Nevertheless, the tip-ups can find calicos for an angler who can then drill holes in that area and jig for the fish. Typically, successful calico bass lures include very small jigs and spoons. The angler frequently uses a very small bit of a shiner or a minnow stuck on the hook of one of these lures to attract calicos. Wax worms, mousies, grubs and other insect larvae bought in bait shops also serve this purpose.