The bass, in aggregate the most popular gamefish species in the state, are physical manifestations of the waters in which they swim. Each has a particular niche, one that reflects their favored riverine homes. The trim, fast, small but truculent Guadalupes live in the small, fast, clear waters of the Hill Country. Spotted bass like the clean, tea-colored water that moves over the white sand bars of east Texas waterways. Smallmouths share some of the central Texas waters with their Guadalupe cousins, but thrive best in the Devils and Pecos rivers, incongruently cool, spring-fed rivers coursing through the harsh, dry desert country of western Texas.
Rivers are where they fit.
They do pretty darned well in reservoirs and stock tanks and even aquariums. But they belong in living, moving waterways. Thank goodness, many still live there. But anyone who makes the effort over the next month or so can discover just how fine fishing those rivers can be. And odds are, they'll become enamored of the fish and the places in which they live.