Balancing Fisheries Management and Water Uses for Impounded River Systems

Trends over Time for the Arkansas River Fishery: A Case History

Jeffrey W. Quinn and Robert L. Limbird

doi: https://doi.org/10.47886/9781934874066.ch12

Abstract.—We evaluated long-term fisheries data relative to a range of perturbations for the Arkansas River from 1970 to 2006. Rotenone sample sites were located at pool 13 (Garrison Creek), Ozark Lake (Lavaca), and Lake Dardanelle (Panther Cove and the Arkansas Nuclear 1 Effluent Bay). The period of record was 24 years for Garrison Creek and Lavaca, 29 years for Effluent Bay, and 30 years for Panther Cove. Mean total fish biomass ranged between 466 kg/ha and 1,601 kg/ha among sites, and no temporal trends were detected for total biomass. Invasion of zebra mussels Dreissena polymorpha, discovery of largemouth bass virus, and imposition of a 381 mm total length (TL) minimum length limit for largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides likely contributed to notable changes in these fisheries during the past 30 years. Biomass of redear sunfish Lepomis microlophus, freshwater drum Aplodinotus grunniens, and blue catfish Ictalurus furcatus increased in association with the invasion of the river by nonnative zebra mussels. Spotted gar Lepisosteus oculatus and paddlefish Polyodon spathula biomass increased, and common carp Cyprinus carpio biomass declined coincident with the zebra mussel invasion. Large-scale sedimentation of aquatic habitats may have been related to observed declines of backwater-oriented species, especially common carp and spotted gar. The frequency of largemouth bass between 350 and 400 mm TL increased in electrofishing samples after the imposition of a 381-mm-TL minimum length limit, and total catch per hour of largemouth bass greater than 381 mm TL increased. Our associations would suggest that the discovery of largemouth bass virus during 2000 contributed to (1) lower electrofishing catch per hour of largemouth bass greater than 533 mm TL, and (2) an average increase of 420 h required for an angler to catch a 2.27-kg largemouth bass. We anticipate further changes in the Arkansas River during the next decade from the biological invasions of white perch Morone americana, bighead carp Hypophthalmichthys nobilis, and silver carp H. molitrix; increased establishment of aquatic vegetation; and accelerated loss of aquatic habitats associated with planned federal navigation channel improvements.