Black Bass Diversity: Multidisciplinary Science for Conservation

Year-Class Production of Black Bass Before and After Opening of a Spring Catch-and-Release Season in New York: Case Studies from Three Lakes

James R. Jackson, Donald W. Einhouse, Anthony J. VanDeValk and Thomas E. Brooking

doi: https://doi.org/10.47886/9781934874400.ch17

Abstract.—Impacts of angling for black bass Micropterus spp. during the nesting stage have received much recent attention, with particular focus on individual nest and genetic implications. However, few empirical studies of population-level impacts have been conducted. New York State historically protected nesting bass with a closed season. In 1994, a special spring bass season was opened in the New York waters of Lake Erie, and in 2007, a spring catch-and-immediate-release season was opened in most of New York’s remaining waters. Long-term monitoring programs were in place on two inland lakes and New York’s portion of Lake Erie prior to the regulation changes, facilitating assessment of impacts of liberalizing regulations on year-class production. In Canadarago Lake (surface area 770 ha), fall electrofishing surveys sampled both young-of-year Largemouth Bass M. salmoides and Smallmouth Bass M. dolomieu. Mean catch per hour of Largemouth Bass during the 6 years prior to the spring season was 15.6, compared to 27.8/h over the postchange years (p = 0.63). For Smallmouth Bass in Canadargo Lake, prechange catch rates averaged 1.2/h, with a rate of 0.6/h after the change (p = 0.32). In Oneida Lake (surface area 20,670 ha), trawl surveys provided an index of young-of-year Smallmouth Bass. Average catch-per-haul during the 6 years prior to the regulation change was 0.4 compared to 1.8/haul during the following 6 years (p = 0.04). Gill-net surveys of age-2 Smallmouth Bass in Lake Erie produced a year-class index of 3.0/net over 15 years prior to opening of a spring bass fishery and a catch of 6.0/net over the following 17 years (p = 0.04). In three of four cases, year-class production increased following the opening of spring angling for bass, and increases were statistically significant for Smallmouth Bass in Oneida Lake and Lake Erie. Our results provide no evidence that spring fishing for black bass in large lake systems results in negative population level impacts on bass recruitment.