conditions glossary
What water temperature do bass prefer?
Largemouth bass seek roughly 77–80°F in summer, spawn around 60–75°F, and slow sharply below 50°F.
Bass are temperature-driven. In summer they avoid water warmer than 80°F and hold in the 77–80°F band; as a lake cools through the low-to-mid 50s in fall they slide to deeper water, and feeding drops off hard below 50°F.
baromoon models surface water temperature from the air-temperature history, then uses those bands for the spawn phase, the derived position state, and the cold-water feed.
See it in the report
Sources (quoted verbatim)
“Most bass avoid water that exceeds 80 degrees and seek 77 to 80 degrees places.” — Iowa DNR — Largemouth bass · T2 (checked 2026-09-29)
“As fall progresses and water temperature cools to the low to mid-50's, bass will return to deep waters.” — Iowa DNR — Largemouth bass · T2 (checked 2026-09-29)
“Bass feeding is greatly reduced below 50 degrees as they become tired.” — Iowa DNR — Largemouth bass · T2 (checked 2026-09-29)
“As an example, largemouth bass prefer water temperatures between 60-75 degrees for spawning, while bluegill spawn when water temperatures are in the 75-85-degree range.” — Take Me Fishing — Determining factors for freshwater fish spawning times (Mar 2018) · T2 (checked 2026-09-19)