There is well-defined difference between “structure” and “cover.” Structure (the bridge crossing) could be defined as places on a lake with some feature that makes them unusual from the surrounding area. Rip-rap, creeks, rivers, humps, ridges and pond dams all are forms of structure. Cover (lily pads), meanwhile, provides the fish with a place to hide and/or ambush cover. Aquatic vegetation, brush, willows and buck brush all are forms of cover.

Show me a largemouth bass and I’ll invariably be able to show you one of three things – cover, structure or a raw thumb – in some cases, all three.

It’s inevitable.

Bass and other sport fish species relate to the underwater homes in much the same way that energetic bar hops might relate to Bourbon St. on a Friday night.

To wit: Pick a bar and you’ll find a boozer. Find a drastic change in a lake’s contour, visible or invisible, and you’ll be apt to find bass at one time or another.

Bass are object-oriented creatures. It’s as simple as that.
They hide under logs.
They back themselves into bushes.
The bury up in vegetation, be it pepper grass, cattails or lush hydrilla.

These are all forms of “cover” which, when located alone or near an attractive “structure,” will almost always enhance an angler’s chances of locating and catching numbers of fish.

Now that you’re totally confused, let’s distinguish the concrete difference between two of the most misused terms in the bass fishing lingo. In turn, we’ll explore some other terms that have true meaning in the typical tackle shop conversation.

STRUCTURE

Structure has more to do with contour than anything else. In other words, structure is some of sort feature in a reservoir’s bottom that is different from whatever surrounds it.

To get a better grasp of the term, take a look around at the surroundings next time you’re driving down the highway. Look for small creeks, county roads, rolling hills, rock piles, stock ponds, etc…

Now take things a step farther and imagine what that terrain would do for fishing conditions if it were flooded by say, 12 feet of water.

If you bass fish, the case is closed. If not, a little more explanation is due.

A creek channel is structure because it creates a winding change in water depth. A roadbed is structure because it provides an open water path and may yield a slight change in water depth in the form of bar ditches on both sides.

A shallow flat falls into the structure category as well. However, the best flats are generally those located adjacent to deep water. Realize, too, that such a situation could yield a double or triple whammy of sorts in that you could have a “structure within a structure.”

In reality, when a creek channel snakes right up next to a flat and makes a bend, there are three forms of structure worth noting. One, the creek channel itself. Two, the bend in the creek channel. And three, the flat.

For some reason or another, bass will at times congregate in the sharp bends a creek or river channel rather than along the straightaway. So rest assured, finding a bend in a creek near a shallow feeding area is a definite plus.

Other natural forms of structure include rip-rap, ridges, humps, bluffs, breaks, sloughs, old drainage ditches and of course, points.

COVER

Cover is precisely what it claims to be. It is something that provides bass with a place to hide, be it for ambush purposes for shelter from the hot summer sun.

Willow bushes, grass beds, lily pads, brush and logjams are all forms of cover. They attract bait fish, thus attracting bass and other piscatorial predators of the freshwater scene.

Since aquatic vegetation such as hydrilla, coontail and pepper grass require sunlight to grow, their presence on the surface will sometimes signify a particular type of structure to an observant angler.

Take open-water humps, for instance.

A hump is nothing more than a submerged hilltop or underwater island. Therefore, its peak may be only four feet below the surface, while its outer boundaries fall into 15-20 feet of water. Grass will often grow on the shallow peak and may be clearly visible on the surface.

Since the timber has decayed on many of the older impoundments across the Lone Star state, some anglers have begun concocting their own cover by sinking brushtops.

Man-made cover is extremely popular around boat docks and piers, but it also can be productive when carefully placed around open-water structure that is void any type of natural cover. It’s not a good idea to sink brush in an area where there is aquatic vegetation nearby, mainly because bass prefer grass over wood when given the choice.

Like baseball, football, basketball and rodeo, bass fishing is a sport that has a special language all of its own. When serious anglers exchange fishing stories, they do in specific terms.

Here’s a brief look at a glossary of terms that tote true meaning in the mind of the serious bass angler:

Breakline – This involves a sudden increase in depth due to a change in the lay of the land. Often, shallow water/deep water breaklines will be laced with aquatic vegetation, which may or may not be visible on the surface.

Salad or Cabbage Patch – No need for the house dressing, here. When a bass angler talks about salad, he’s talking about thick vegetation such as hydrilla, milfoil, etc…

Hawg – A novice should be able to figure this one out. A hawg is classified as a heavyweight bass weighing five pounds or more.

Holding Area – A holding area is usually associated with structure or cover that tends to attract several bass that are in an active feeding mode.

Pattern – A pattern refers to a culmination of factors that cause bass to be in a certain location at a certain time and react to certain lure and/or presentation in a certain way. If you use a black/blue jig and crawworm to catch three bass out of isolated willow bushes on a mainlake point in seven feet of water and then duplicate the process on another nearby point, you’ve established a productive pattern.

Keeper – Among tournament fishermen, a keeper is recognized as a legal weigh-in fish. On most Texas lakes, 14 inches is the minimum length limit.