Inactive fish seldom school, don't strike readily, and don't move about rapidly enough to quickly replace bass that were caught moments before. Bass ambush if opportunity presents itself, but this is not their preferred feeding tactic. To catch more bass, anglers must know how bass really behave. Actively feeding bass usually move in small groups. Cover is cover for prey.
Prey hide in it to escape bass.
Bass use cover for the same reason. They move into it to rest undisturbed by larger threats like yellow cats and anglers, rather than to feed. Bass are most often caught along the edges of cover because prey gather there and are more easily flushed there. To feed effectively and often, bass move out of thick cover to seek, startle, or flush prey along the cover edges. Copyright Ralph Manns, 1998.