Differences & Similarities
in US vs. Italian Bassin'
by Massimo Zanetti
Unfortunately, in my life, I haven't had yet the chance to fish
waters outside of my native Italy. I hope in the near future to
fish a couple of tournaments in the land of black bass, the USA.
In my previous article, Italian
Bass, you have surely noted how much alike fishing is for
this little green game fish around the world and how much alike
we are in pursuit of our passion. But there are always some
differences, big or little, in the way we approach our fishing
for largemouth and there are many things we can learn from each
other. I'm a regular reader of BASSMASTER magazine and others
publications (books and magazines) around the world and I've
learned a lot of things about the sport of bass fishing in USA.
For me, sharing our experience is the fastest and easy way to
learn more about the sport. So, I'm here to tell you more about
similarities and differences that I've encountered between what
I've read in US magazines and what I've learned in years of bass
fishing in Italian waters.
A BASS IS ALWAYS A BASS
The first thing I've noted about Italian bass and US bass is
that, no matter the water you fish, (USA, Italy, and from what I
understand, South Africa, Japan and other countries), there is no
difference at all in the behavior of bass. Cold fronts slow down
the fish metabolism in Japan as well as in Italy. On hot sunny
days, fish seems to bury in vegetation or in any piece of cover
available in South Africa as well as in Spain. The examples I
give you could be infinite but, in the end, the conclusion is
that the bass around the world react in the same way to events
like fishing pressure, high water, cold fronts etc. Applying
fishing techniques I've previously read on the pages of US
magazines, I understand that in Italy bass react in the same
manner they react in USA. Interesting, isn't it?
Northern Strain. In Italy big mouths reach the
ten-pound range only with great difficulty. This is due to the
fact that the majority of bass population is represented by
Northern strain, along with some spotted and redeye bass. The
Florida strain, the kind of bass stocked in the western lakes and
impoundments in US, are not stocked in Italy. I think that,
thanks to the latitude of Italy, similar to other US states where
this fish is present, the stocking of Florida strain, if ever
done, will be a blessing for the anglers that enjoy bass fishing
as much as I do. The first bass were stocked in Italy at the end
of last century, in a northern Italian lake. By now the bass are
present in almost every kind of Italian water. They are still
mostly in the north and central part of the country, but also a
few in the southern waters and in the islands (Sicilia and
Sardegna).
Speaking about waters, I note a big difference between US
and Italian body of waters. In Italy we haven't got the big
impoundments that are present on the other end of the Atlantic
Ocean. Waters like Sam Rayburn and similar, are not found in
Italy. However we have lot of natural lakes, not as big as Lake
Erie or Ontario but still big enough to host a good population of
largemouths. Lake bass in Italy are not easy to catch, mostly
because they are not as numerous as in other types of water. US
magazine articles help Italian bassers to find and catch these
lake fish but it's an hard job all the same. In ponds and rivers
the population of bass grows dramatically. You can easily find
largemouth all along Italian rivers. Ponds and small canals are,
without doubt, the best place to look for big bass (6 - 8
pounders) because of the low fishing pressure and the difficulty
of fishing these types of waters from a boat.
FISHING TECHNIQUES
Even though bass are the same on both sides of the Atlantic, the
Italian bass fisherman does not always fish the same was as an
American angler. The lures are the same, but we use them
differently in Italy.
Flipping: Because of the many obstacles in
Italian waters and the love that Italian bassers always show for
plastic lures, a short-line technique like flipping is perhaps
the surest and fastest way to fill your live well. Similarities
with US flipping are that the lures are the same American anglers
like to use (plastic worms, lizards, grubs, plastic craws) with
the difference that Italian anglers very often flip tube jigs.
Whatever the lure they are fishing with, a remarkable difference
between US and Italian flipping is the weight. In Italy,
fisherman use 1/4 oz. as regular flipping weight, sometimes 3/8
oz. but rarely more. Plastics will be rigged with a 1 oz. bullet
weight only when you fish tidal rivers and the current is very
strong where keeping contact with the structure requires a lot of
weight. A "jig 'n pig" in Italy is a less-considered
lure to flip, but the few "lucky" fishermen who use it
generally score big! The biggest differences between Italian and
US flipping are the rod and the line. Italian bassers generally
fish with heavy action 7 to 8 feet spinning outfits. Only rarely
will they use a flipping stick with a baitcasting reel.. This is
because, if you fish along a tree-lined bank (a common habitat
for Italian largemouths), the spinning rod will easily present
the lure in the roots of the tree with little effort. Mono line
weights range from 12 to 20 pounds. To fish bulrushes and similar
emergent grass, Italian anglers have developed a system to cover
a lot of water quickly and effectively. They use a ten foot
customized telescopic rod. This rod has a lot of backbone and
heavy tip action. This rod can be used with both spinning
and baitcasting reels, loaded with 20 pound test mono or braided
line. This rod is very light (4 - 5 oz.) and allows the bass man
to fish a whole three day tournament with almost no effort. It's
amazing how strong this rod is considering it's light weight.
That's all about the differences in flipping techniques between
our countries.
Finesse: Bass fishing with a light spinning
outfit has a lot of similarities in the two countries. Most
Italian fishermen will use a 5' to 6' spinning rod with a light
reel. But there is a substantial difference in the way that
Italian bassers will fish with little 4" worms, 3"
grubs and other tiny plastic lures even in waters that are not
properly clear, and they catch lot of fish! The fact is that the
combination light line with a light weight is always deadly for
the bass because the lure has a more natural movement. Some may
think that in muddy waters bass aren't able to locate tiny prey,
but we find the largemouth is well-equipped to find even a small
plastic worm retrieved slowly in dark water. The common rig among
Italian anglers is to use split shot. Jig heads from 1/16 oz. to
1/4 oz. are also used mostly to fish current waters where bass
are more active in winter. We fish jig heads without weed guards
because we find that we simply lose less fish with the exposed
hook.
Spinnerbaits: There are not many anglers in
Italy that fish this metal and plastic-skirted lure with
confidence. But for those few, like me, who wind spinnerbaits
from dawn to dusk, we know in Italy how productive this lure can
be! In the last tournament held here in February, the biggest
bass, a 4 pounder was caught with a spinnerbait. There are no
substantial differences I can see between Italian and American
spinnerbaits. But again, while the lures are the same as you US
guys use, the tackle is sometimes different. To pitch the
spinnerbait around heavy cover Italian anglers often use strong
spinning tackle instead of baitcasting gear. The Italians believe
by using spinning rods, they always obtain an accurate and silent
presentation with underhand casts.
Crankbaits: Like spinnerbaits, crankbaits are
not hit lures among Italian bassers either! They will use a
crankbait, but not very often. Italian anglers rely mostly on
shallow diver models because the majority of them are not deep
water structure fishermen. They tend to fish emergent grass or
shallow waters in the 6 foot depth range. US bassers, because
they are more structure-oriented, they make more use of the deep
and ultra-deep diver crankbaits.
CONCLUSIONS
As you have seen in this article, there are not so many
differences between the way Italian and US anglers approach bass
fishing, mostly because Italian fishermen have learned to fish
for bass from US magazines, books and videos. Yes, some small
differences in tackle or presentation do exist, but I'm not sure
these affect big differences in catching bass or not. So, I hope
reading this article about the Italian fisherman may have shown
you something that could help you in the pursuit of your passion.
Bass fishing is a wonderful sport for people who really care
about fish and the environment. So, practice catch & release
and don't litter. Respect other fishermen. And remember the
future generations who will enjoy the sport as much as we do.
Hope they are all lunkers, Massimo.
| Author Information.
 Massimo Zanetti is
33 years old, Italian by birth and bassman by choice! Massimo is
married to his wife Annalisa since 1992 and they have two
daughters, Paola and Chiara. Fishing since he was a kid, now
Massimo fishes almost exclusively for bass since 1988. He started
bass fishing competitively in late 1992. Massimo writes articles
for a few Italian fishing magazines, club newsletters, and
websites. Massimo has been a featured speaker at several
seminars.
Massimo considers himself a versatile bass
fisherman who always tries to adapt techniques and lures to
weather/water conditions and to the bass metabolism. He loves to
fish around shallow cover and visible targets, and he's mostly a
river fisherman. In his opinion, this is the way to go!
He is a field tester for Shimano Italia/Rapala
and he's sponsored by KeepAlive Oxygen Infusors, S.O.B. Fishing
Products, Snakebite Custom Fishing Tackle and Scientific Bass
Products. |
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