Posted on 10/07/2005 9:19:00 AM PDT by girlangler
Smallmouth bass travel farther than largemouth
By Terry Knight -- Record-Bee outdoors columnist
During the weigh-in for the Angler's Choice Tournament of Champions on Saturday at the Konocti Vista Casino, Resort and Marina, a small group of fishermen got into a discussion about how far the bass being released at the tournament would travel.
The guesses ranged from less than a mile to more than 15 miles. One fisherman insisted that bass have homing instincts and would travel all the way back to the area they were caught. For example, if a bass was caught near Redbud Park in Clearlake and then transported to the tournament weigh-in site at Lakeport, that bass would return to Redbud Park.
That's an interesting theory, however, according to studies done by the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) and other biologists, largemouth bass move very little during their entire lifetime.
A few years ago, the DFG tagged 580 bass (497 were smallmouth and the remaining 83 were largemouth) caught during a tournament at Lake Shasta. The bass were then released at the weigh-in site. Fishermen catching the tagged fish were asked to contact the DFG. The study lasted three years.
Anglers returned 34 largemouth bass tags. Thirteen were caught less than a mile from the release site. Twenty-one were caught from one mile to seven miles from the release site.
During the first 40 days after being released, the average distance traveled by the fish was less than a mile and the average for the entire three-year study period was less than two miles.
The smallmouth bass used in the study traveled much farther after being released. Of the 497 smallmouth bass tagged and released, 87 percent were caught from two to 15 miles from the release site. Within the first 20 days after being released, the majority of the smallies traveled at least three miles and a few traveled as far as eight miles.
The conclusion of the biologists was that largemouth bass travel very short distances after being released. They established new territory and continue on with their lives. However, smallmouth bass will travel back to where they were caught. Why smallmouths have this homing ability and largemouths don't, no one knows for sure.
Clear Lake has few smallmouth bass, with only two or three being caught per year. However, there is a large population of largemouth bass scattered throughout the lake.
The question many fishermen are asking: "Does holding most of the bass tournaments in only one area result in the stockpiling of fish?"
For example, just about all the 25 of the major bass tournaments scheduled for the lake in 2005-06 will operate out of Konocti Vista, which is located near Lakeport and has excellent facilities to host bass tournaments.
Typically during a two-day tournament approximately 1,000 to 1,500 adult bass will be weighed and released in the vicinity of Lakeport. Many of these bass are caught in the south end of the lake or from the Nice-Lucerne area and transported to the weigh-in site. If the DFG studies prove to be true, those fish won't be returning to areas from where they were caught.
Does taking that many bass from the south end deplete the fishery? To date, there hasn't been any evidence shown that supports that theory. Actually, the bass fishing from Monitor Island to Redbud Park has been excellent and the Rattlesnake Arm continues to produce huge quantities of bass. The same applies to the docks along the Nice-Lucerne shoreline.
If the DFG determines that one area is being overloaded with bass they can require that tournament release sites be spread around the lake, but I don't look for that to happen. It only takes a few adult bass to repopulate an area and there are enough bass that are never caught to accomplish this. Studies have shown that in a lake as large as Clear Lake, less than 20 percent of the bass ever feel the sting of a hook. Most are born, live and die and never come into contact with a human.
Father, son win tourney
The father-son team of Randy McAbee Sr. and Randy McAbee Jr. of Bakersfield won the Angler's Choice Team Tournament of Champions with a total two-day weight of 55.34 pounds. They won a new, fully-rigged bass boat. The tournament drew 122 boats and was hosted by Konocti Vista Casino, Resort and Marina.
Works the same for movie stars.
sure - they spend less time talking...;-)
Shocking story. Just shocking.
Memorized and will use info at next party...
Well duh, thats why they are small mouth, they arent as lazy as the big mouth variety.
Well,
This does imply that fishing near a tournament release site could be productive, does it not?
So is this Bush's fault or FEMA's fault? /sarcasm
i was afraid of that one...
I think I'll catch a largemouth and release it on my grill this weekend and see how far that puppy travels.
So, Son, keep your mouth shut and you'll go far.
I've caught alot of bass (both largemouth and smallies) and never kept any of them.
I release all bass too.
In fact I release almost all fish I catch.
My Cajun brother-in-law, on the other hand, eats everything that comes off the hook. And man can that man fry fish.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.