I've seen a lot of marks like that on bass and suspected they had had a run in with a gar, gator, or otter. One would like to find for forensic purposes more distinct teeth impressions, like a row of triangular teeth marks from a gator or gar, or the paired vampiric stab wounds from the long canines of otters, or the stripes of their claw marks. Perhaps those fish with the most diagnostic marks have the worst prognosis, and the majority end up being killed and thoroughly consumed by, say, an otter family.
I have fished opposite a pair of otters in very good humor on the opposite bank chowing down a five or six pound bass, disassembling and consuming it quite expertly. Predators do tend to complete the job more often than not -- and I think a still viable, merely injured fish is unlikely.
An exception is, of course, the human predator of bass, who surely has a bad reputation among other predators, for we injure and capture the bass, but then take the hook out and return him or her to the water, hoping the fish will be "okay." Thanks so much for that adventure, Mr Human! The honest predators must see the immorality of our actions, and I am as guilty as any. We humans frighten and abuse a ton of fish without killing and eating, just for sport. Oh, but it is really great fun!
Sometimes, to seem a more useful animal among the natural fauna, I donate some bass to a local charity, namely the great blue heron that follows me around the banks. He flies over to stalk behind me when he sees me fishing. I talk to him but he does not answer back -- just looks at me. He's thinking, "Give me a fish, idiot."
Anyway, I usually do. I toss it on the bank and he clamors over for it, stabs it, and flies off. Once, when I tossed the bird a larger bass, the heron decided to mortally stab the fish once and allow it to swim off. The bird stood there, attentively. Ten minutes later, when the fish had finally succumbed, the carcass rose to the surface and the bird swept in, picked it up and flew off with it.
Anyway, we in Florida don't get a citation for a big one per se, but we can get the "TrophyCatch Award." I believe it involves a $100 gift certificate from Bass Pro and they put your name in a drawing for a fancy bass boat. All you have to do is show them a photo of the fish hanging from your scale weighing 8 lbs. or more.
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