The idea that a hard freeze in early December is needed to trigger the early spawn is just a myth. The milder the winter, the higher the water temperatures remain; and the sooner a steady warming trend develops, the earlier the bass spawn. On many lakes, that can be in January, but it will not happen on all lakes.

Clearwater lakes offer excellent sight-fishing opportunities during the spawn, but do not count on experiencing that in January, even under the best weather conditions. The darker the water in the lake, the quicker it warms, because darker water retains heat better than in gin-clear lakes. A lake that is stained normally has bass spawning sooner than a lake with very clear water.

Obvious exceptions exist. There are a number of spring-fed tributaries to major lakes in Florida, and those springs generally pump out water at a constant 72 degrees throughout the year. In this case, sunlight isn't needed to warm the water, and water clarity plays no real role. The water from the springs is already warm. Spring-fed flows like Salt Run, DeLeon Springs or Wekkiva may see some bass spawning on Christmas Day, yet lakes well to the south of them that are extremely clear but lack extensive underground springs may not see a significant spawn until late February or early March.

Crooked Lake in Polk County is an excellent example of this phenomenon. It is over 100 miles to the south of the spring boil area at Salt Run and is extremely clear. However, bass normally bed in Salt Run by New Year's Day and seldom bed in Crooked Lake until well after Valentine's Day.

Clear waters literally scream bedding bass. But in reality, the dirtier waters see them spawn first, unless an underground spring feed is involved. Anglers looking for early spawners need to seek out those stained lakes, but that does not automatically rule out clearwater lakes.

"A lake that's normally clear and usually sees a February or March spawn can have an early spawn if we get a lot of winter rain that stains the water," Mann noted. "It's not something that is carved in stone. Anglers looking for an early spawn need to keep up on current lake conditions."

One thing anglers do not have to do, however, is plan their forays around the moon phases, which play a lesser role than is commonly assumed.

"There is some research into the effect moon phases exert on spawning behavior," Mann pointed out, "but surprisingly, there isn't a lot. It is debatable whether the moon phase plays as large a role in spawning behavior as some anglers think. Water temperature is a bigger factor, and all of the sunfish species will spawn when it is right. During the early spawn, that might be on a full or new moon, or it might not. I would not automatically expect a spawn on a moon phase, but I wouldn't be surprised to see one. I just wouldn't plan my fishing trip around the moon. If the water temperature trend is good, I'm going fishing, regardless of the moon phase."

When Mann does take to the waters, seeking the earliest spawners, he ignores the commonly held belief that early spawners bed deeper than the latter fish in order to provide more of a buffer against adverse environmental conditions. In fact, the reverse is actually true.