jigs and plugs . Watch for schools of these aggressive fish to break the surface as they feed . Popular spots include Island View , Honey Creek , face of the dam and the “ cut ” ( Connecting Channel ). Channel catfish angling becomes very productive from the end of June until September . These whiskered wonders can be caught just about anywhere on the lake . Bays are probably the best place to fish . Favorite baits include night crawlers , cut-bait ( cut up fish ), chicken liver and stink baits . Channel catfish can be caught during the day but most of the action occurs after dark . A very good tactic to try later in the summer is to fish feeder streams after a good hard rain . As the streams rise , they collect and carry food organisms that draw the channel catfish near and into the mouth of these streams .
Largemouth bass can be found throughout the lake near several types of cover . Bass in the two major forks of the reservoir will be associated with the old stream channel and vast amounts of standing timber . Main lake bass are more oriented to rocky points , drop-offs , old river
channels and coves . The location of largemouth bass in the main reservoir and the two forks will depend on the time of year , water quality and level of the lake . Prime times for bass fishing at Rathbun Lake are during late April through the middle of June and again during late September and October .
The most effective bass lures include artificial nightcrawlers , shallow and deep running crank baits , buzz baits and spinner baits . Darker colored artificial nightcrawlers and crank baits in the colors of silver , blue or black over silver and crawdad appear to be the way to go . Buzz baits fished with trailer hooks late in the summer and early fall during early morning or late evening hours can be effective . Spinner bait colors will vary with water quality and time of day .
Other fish include : bluegill , green sunfish , gizzard shad , yellow bass , common carp , carpsucker mixed species , flathead catfish , freshwater drum , largemouth bass , white crappie , bigmouth buffalo , orangespotted sunfish and yellow perch .
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