Male Bass stay on the nest to protect the fry and are highly territorial. They stay for 20 to 40 days. If a Bass is removed from a nest for any length of time, hordes of perch, blue gill, rock bass and bullheads will go into a feeding frenzy on the fry and eggs Bass played for 2 minutes will return to their nest within 4 to 6 minutes. If played longer or held out of the water they will take an extended time and may never return to protect their brood. Bass which are not disturbed.
Females mate with the largest males, the largest males start spawning first.
Large Bass are more successful in spawning. If removed they will be replaced by smaller fish the next year. These are less successful in reproducing. You can help conserve bass by not targeting nesting males, reeling them in quickly, releasing any large accidentally caught bass pre-season, and keep them in the water while unhooking. Out of water time is very stressful.