On another crab note; I am always amazed to see swimming crabs on the surface of the flats for long periods of time. This is not a once in a while occurance, but something I see when I'm drifting a flat for a while. I'm amazed not at their swimming, but at the thrash they make for a long period of time with nothing coming by to eat them. I've seen this during both bluefish and bass o mania flats trips.
I've also gutted blues and found crabs inside. I wonder if as Mark suggests they only eat them when they see them burrowing in the sand and if the drifting crab patterns are ignored the same way I've seen swimming crab ignored.
Another data point - I have seen bass at night on the flats (illuminated by my bazillion candlepower light) nose down grubbing at something. Crabs?
As to John Cloyd's strip as fast as possible approach, the strikes I get at night on poppers are more often than not, on either stationary poppers resting on the surface or on verry slowww popping action.
However; I keep seeing silversides on the surface at night getting lambasted by bass whacking at them in that pop-pop-pop sound we all love and wonder if my night retrieve of thin flies is too slow and I should be ripping it in much faster. I know my tendency after dark is to be much slower and more deliberate.
Again - I fish the flats at night, not the day which might make a big difference in both fly as well as retrieve.
As Mark says, very interesting....I really, really want to land a silly little 16" bass on the flats at night...
L