Many Kansas bass anglers prefer the great angling action at the estimated 150,000 farm ponds scattered across the state. During a midday break from turkey hunting, Eric Johnson caught this hefty bucketmouth at a Flint Hills farm pond. Photo by Marc Murrell.

If you're a Kansas schoolteacher, May is a month that you've looked forward to all year: That's when most of our educators call it quits for the summer.

However, if you're a teacher who happens to be an avid bass fisherman, May might hold even greater importance: It's the very time of year in the Sunflower State that produces some of the finest fishing opportunities for Ol' Bucketmouth to be found around the state. Not only does this month account for lots of fish, but it also produces some mighty impressive wallhangers.

"May is probably the month when we receive the most Master Angler awards for largemouth bass," said the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Park's Mike Miller, also an avid bass fisherman. "It's a great month to catch bass."

And he ought to know!

While Kansas may not be the first state that comes to mind when bass fishing is mentioned, don't tell that to anglers who call this state home. "The last licensed-angler survey we did, it was the most preferred species," said KDWP fisheries chief Doug Nygren.

So how did bass beat out other popular fish -- such as crappie and channel catfish -- that produce tastier filets? "I think it's been promoted at the national level through the media and tournament events," Nygren said. "And it's a fish that can be caught a variety of ways, either on artificial lures or using live bait."

As far as places to catch bass go, Kansas has more than 20 reservoirs for anglers to try their luck at. However, some are more noteworthy than others. One 2,600-acre body of water in east-central Kansas seems to shine year in and year out.

"That's probably going to be La Cygne," Nygren said. "It has the highest density of fish, but it also has the biggest fish. Almost every year La Cygne walks away with the biggest fish sampled by our biologists. Last year the largest fish sampled in electrofishing was 8.4 pounds, and a lot of times we've had them over 10 pounds there."

Other reservoirs that Kansas' bass anglers should consider, according to Nygren, include Cedar Bluff, Wilson and Milford. And the 2005 Fishing Forecast published by the KDWP showed Sebelius, Hillsdale, El Dorado and Melvern as a few more reservoirs with high bass-fishing potential.

Kansas reservoirs that boast good bass fishing typically still have plenty of aquatic vegetation and adequate water levels. The survival of young bass in these areas is better, and as a result, more of them make it to a catchable size.

"The predator-prey relationship is better in those situations for young-of-the-year fish and we see better recruitment," said Nygren.