The text books say Threadfin are widely used as forage because they are an open water fish which use pelagic plankton and are less likely to compete for food with young sport fish who start life in the shallows. They never grow to a large size that would prevent them from being eaten by sport fish, as often happens with their cousin, the gizzard shad. They have an extended spawning season which makes them very prolific and able to maintain their population even against some intense predatory pressure. Since shad will probably be encountered in most bass waters it would be wise to be armed with a little knowledge about their behavior and characteristics. We will start with spawning - the time when shad are most available to sport fish.
Shad are surface spawners that emit an adhesive egg that sticks to the first thing it touches.
They spawn at first light in the morning when the water temperature climbs to 65 F or warmer. The favored site is the back of a canyon or cove marked with mats of driftwood, debris, or recently inundated shoreline plant life. The gravid female swims along the surface trailed by 5 or 6 males. In this condition the normally elusive shad can be readily dip-netted from the water and used by anglers. The shad convoy also parades right past hungry bass at prime time during the subdued light of morning.