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Some studies and a little 2c, no particular order:
Differences in catch rates of Black Crappie and Largemouth Bass anglers using forward-facing sonar in Lake Talquin, FL
> ...anglers who use FFS have significantly higher catch rates for largemouth bass [implied release]...and black crappie...and significantly higher release rates for black crappie than non-FFS anglers.
Angling for Nesting Bass: Long-Term Behavioral and Reproductive Consequences
> For both [pargemouth and smallmouth], significant declines in both aggression and angling vulnerability were found in [fished-for fry-guarders], but not in the 2 unexploited populations, demonstrating that angling-induced evolution can occur even in black bass catch-and-release fisheries.
No surprise at all of course. And uh that's not evolution – it is behavioral change/adaptation.
Evaluating hook removal techniques on jaw-hooked Smallmouth Bass captured with soft plastic jigs
Most important part to me:
> Our findings also suggested that gripping the fish by the lower mandible and using hands constituted the most effective hook removal approach....
Take that lower-jaw police! 😁 And how 'bout these apples:
> ...the use of pliers while holding the fish by the lower mandible resulted in no observed injuries....
5 decades of smallmouth bass monitoring reveal the potential benefits of catch-and-release angling practices in a Great Lakes connecting water
They claim it's not as much gobies but C&R:
> Substantial changes in the size structure of the smallmouth bass population of Lake St Clair have occurred since 1972. Smallmouth bass now exhibit larger population size structure...rare in the 1970s and 1980s.
> These changes do not appear to be associated with changes in biomass or growth rates associated with new invasive prey species such as round goby, but rather increased survival.
Whole-lake coarse woody habitat addition facilitates ecosystem regime restructuring in an oligotrophic lake
Short version is they found that dropping trees in a lake increases chlorophyl, the stuff small fish feed on and dissolved oxygen. In other words, things bass have known for years...😁
Direct comparison of boat access-based autonomous cameras and roving creel surveys for estimating fishing effort: implications for use in creel surveys with non-uniform probability sampling
Study in MN. Yep your DNR wants to monitor your catch by installing trailcams at boat ramps.
Novel Adomaviruses Associated with Blotchy Bass Syndrome in Black Basses
> The manifestation of this skin disease appears to be seasonal in both species, primarily affects adults and is of unknown health consequence.
Couldn't see the whole study so I wonder if they tested healthy bass for those viruses too.
Quantifying the impact of temperature variation in livewells on largemouth bass
Doesn't say much but looks like too much ice = no bueno. If I had to pick, I'll go with the guys who fish hot-weather tournaments and don't just keep their bass alive but keep them healthy.
Immunological Responses and Protection in the Largemouth Bass (Microterus salmoides) Immunized with Inactivated Vaccine Against Largemouth Bass Ranavirus (LMBRaV)
Supposedly works somewhat but good luck vaxing all those fish lol.
Using angler-submitted records to interpret the spatial seasonality of a large predator (Black bass, Micropterus spp.)
> The efficacy of angling techniques varied seasonally. Those effective in winter were midwater, while those effective in summer were bottom or surface. Conversely, a combination of bottom and midwater techniques were effective in the fall and spring, suggesting cyclic habitat transitions.
> Moreover, the frequency with which fish were caught over various macrohabitats varied seasonally and cyclically.
🤣 Ya think??
Assessing the potential for smallmouth bass population establishment in Grand Canyon
Remember all that panic about smallmouths? Well:
> These periods of high turbidity coincide with critical early life stages of smallmouth bass, likely limiting foraging efficiency, growth and overwinter survival. Our population [computer] model indicates that rapidly growing and sustained smallmouth bass populations require successful recruitment at least once every 2 years, but empirical data suggest that these conditions occur only every 5-7 years in Grand Canyon.
> This would make long-term establishment of self-sustaining smallmouth bass populations in Grand Canyon unlikely or at least highly uncertain.
And not only that:
> ...humpback chub populations [which the smallies supposedly would be a threat to] in Grand Canyon have expanded during the past 10-15 years, very likely due to favorably warm river temperature [which the Chicken Littles have said they think is how smallmouths could expand].
Algal bloom, anglers perception, and economic impact of recreational fishing – the case of lake Okeechobee, FL
> In 2019, recreational fishing generated about $369 mil in economic output, supporting 2,700 jobs and $122 mil in earnings. Under [something didn't make sense here] extreme HAB [harmful algal bloom] scenarios, regional earnings could decline by 7.74% and 44.32%, respectively.
Disappointing one
Seasonal Variation in Responses of Largemouth Bass (Micropterus nigricans) Caught During Live-Release Angling Tournaments
This is ultra-misleading:
> ...nearly 12-fold higher mortality in late-season tournaments at higher water temperatures.
The study looked at SOME data from 1 lake, and here are the #s:
> Only 1 fish died of those tagged in tournaments early in the year (1.7% mortality rate), whereas 9 fish died of those tagged in tournaments late in the year [summer] (20.3% mortality).
Some data, 1 lake, 10 fish?? C'mon man. Then they said:
> If tournament pressure is intense enough, populations could be negatively impacted, thereby necessitating management actions to reduce tournament impacts over the longer term.
Based on what?? And don't get me started on all the good bass fishermen and tournaments do vs 10 bass dying man, dang.
What to know if you don't: When scientists do a study, they need it to have significant results. Else they just wasted all that time, they can't publish a paper and thus their careers do not advance.
Story: I did an experiment in college that had junk results. My prof told me to apply this and that statistical test and -presto- the results looked significant. Thought then and still think...that's bull shad man...🙄
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