What’s going to kill all of the bass next?

[Tennessee Boy]

I’ve been bass fishing a long time.  This is a list of the things that I’ve heard over the years that were/are supposed to be an iminent threat to bass. Did I miss anything?

Angler hunger

Lack of vegetation due to spraying

Lack of vegetation due to grass carp

Soft plastics 

LMBV

Angler’s touching fish and harming their slime coat causing infection and death.

Zebra mussels

Common Carp

Asian Carp

 

All of these threats and the lakes I fish still have bass.... well except for Kentucky Lake.

 

 

[Efishin]

Great post. Pollution is another thing that can harm the fish.

 

[WRB]

The only item listed threatening Bass survival is the virus mentioned.

Over harvesting is difficult because bass spawn every year.

Water chemistry and dissolved oxygen levels are important and pesticides, industrial waste can threaten specific eccosystems, not the overall bass population.

Acid Rain wasn't on your list and considered a threat back in the 70's-80's until the EPA reduced smoke stack pollution.

The real threat to survival is another mega drought cycle that occurs irregularly every 2 to 5 hundred years where annual rain fall is less then 4 to 6 inches over a 100 year period.

Last recorded was about 850 AD to 1100AD and 1200AD to 1350 AD along the Pacific coast. If a mega drought develops we are in trouble.

Tom

[the reel ess]

nm

[J Francho]

Sankeheads

EU milfoil

Curly leaf pond weed

Round gobies

Quagga mussels

Assorted cichlid species

Lawn fertilizer

Jumping carp

Damming

Drought

Acid Rain

Body piercing

Tatoos

Kale

Legalization

Cable TV

EVs

Samsung

Wildfires

Sharknado

Spinner rims (Sprewells)

Crocks

Socks that don't match

Tofurky

 

 

[BassinCNY]

I would say the reduction in acid rain is one of the great environmental success stories in this area. I remember when some of the Adirondack lakes and ponds were totally fishless due to the problem.

 

Something that was seen as a threat to bass but seems to actually be a boon is the goby. Instead of them eating all the bass eggs the bass are eating them.

[WRB]

Bass predators haven't reduced the population significantly over centuries. 

man

coromrants

Herons

osprey

otters

turtles

bass

gar

pike

musky

catfish

Man tops the list, we are their worst enemy.

Tom

 

 

[the reel ess]

Fishing tournaments

[MN Fisher]

Over Management.

PETA

[TnRiver46]

Gloom and doom from bass fishermen is their greatest threat 

[Tennessee Boy]

1 hour ago, J Francho said:

Crocks

Man you got me thinking now.  I bought my first pair of crocks for fishing in 2018, right when the decline in the Kentucky lake bass population seemed to start.   Could it all be my fault?

[Choporoz]

What about Salmon Huggers?

[Vilas15]

4 hours ago, Tennessee Boy said:

I’ve been bass fishing a long time.  This is a list of the things that I’ve heard over the years that were/are supposed to be an iminent threat to bass. Did I miss anything?

Angler hunger

Lack of vegetation due to spraying

Lack of vegetation due to grass carp

Soft plastics 

LMBV

Angler’s touching fish and harming their slime coat causing infection and death.

Zebra mussels

Common Carp

Asian Carp

 

All of these threats and the lakes I fish still have bass.... well except for Kentucky Lake.

 

 

Just because the bass have not gone extinct doesn't mean there are things that can harm them or hurt a fishery. I dont see why investigating and trying to improve the quantity and quality of fish is a bad thing. I'll say that stuff like this can be overblown by TV, etc. and if thats your point ill agree with it.

 

2 hours ago, WRB said:

Bass predators haven't reduced the population significantly over centuries. 

man

coromrants

Herons

osprey

otters

turtles

bass

gar

pike

musky

catfish

Man tops the list, we are their worst enemy.

Tom

 

 

Youre right here, but we could wipe them out if we tried. See the Yangtze river 10 year fishing ban. Bass are lucky we've got regulations and even more so that catch and release is so prevalent.

[WRB]

It's possible to kill off every fish in a specific waterway and happens from time to time by fishery management to remove unwanted fish including bass.

California's plan is to remove Black* bass and Strip bass from the San Joaquine delta and river system because they are non native species threatening the salmon and steelhead smolt population. 

Politicans are a threat to bass survival.

Tom

* Black bass are the family of fish including Largemouth , Smallmouth and Spotted bass in the Delta's world class fishery.

[Ratherbfishing]

Y2K.  Oh wait, that was YEARS ago.  Y3K, then.

[galyonj]

1 hour ago, Tennessee Boy said:

Man you got me thinking now.  I bought my first pair of crocks for fishing in 2018, right when the decline in the Kentucky lake bass population seemed to start.   Could it all be my fault?

You monster. I hope you're proud of yourself.

[slonezp]

When all the bass are dead, there is bound to be a zombass apocalypse 

[Tennessee Boy]

3 hours ago, Vilas15 said:

Just because the bass have not gone extinct doesn't mean there are things that can harm them or hurt a fishery. I dont see why investigating and trying to improve the quantity and quality of fish is a bad thing. I'll say that stuff like this can be overblown by TV, etc. and if thats your point ill agree with it.

For everything on my list, I could have written a paragraph or more about the serious conversations I’ve had over the years with fishing friends and fellow bass club members about how these things were going to ruin fishing.  Some of the things on the list still could I guess.  The point I think needs to be made is fishery’s are complex and we really don’t know how they will react to changes. Most of the things anglers were panicking about 30 years ago turned out not to be a problem.  At one point people were afraid that evasive aquatic vegetation was going to destroy Lake Guntersville.  Twenty years later the bass fishing community went  ballistic when there was talk of trying to kill it all.  Sometimes what we think is harmful turns out to be helpful.  I have released every bass I have caught in the last 30 years but I’m not sure if that helps the fishing or contributes to overpopulation.  It probably depends on the fishery.  Something has had a major impact on Kentucky Lake in the last few years.  Most people are blaming Asian Carp.  I’m sure they haven’t helped but I don’t know how much they are to blame.  The experts are not say they are the only cause.  Some people around here are saying they need to kill everything in Kentucky lake and start over.  That’s crazy on so many levels and it’s impossible.  I try to listen to the experts and follow their recommendations and the regulations that are implemented based on their findings.  I also try to not to panic when some pro says the Ned rig is killing thousands of bass.

[WRB]

Bass populations fluctuate in cycles depending on recruitment of the bass and their prey fish spawn. Water levels dropping during the spawn leaving beds dry for example tends to kill off  the spawn. Extreme prolonged cold weather during the spawn can have a impact to a year class and abundant successful spawn tends to recover a lost year class.

Bass populations going undiscovered for several years tends to boost the population and over harvesting smaller bodies of water can impact the population.

It's usually a combination of events the drops the bass population, not a single factor unless man gets involved.

Tom

[J._Bricker]

1 hour ago, WRB said:

It's possible to kill off every fish in a specific waterway and happens from time to time by fishery management to remove unwanted fish including bass.

California's plan is to remove Black* bass and Strip bass from the San Joaquine delta and river system because they are non native species threatening the salmon and steelhead smolt population. 

Politicans are a threat to bass survival.

Tom

* Black bass are the family of fish including Largemouth , Smallmouth and Spotted bass in the Delta's world class fishery.

I resisted the temptation Tom, unsuccessfully. California State Parks, Division of Boating and Waterways continues its distribution of herbicides throughout delta waterways to remove cover for black bass. The removal of non-native game fish from the delta came courtesy of a rider Diane Feinstein attached to the Federal Clean Water Act in response to the Flint Michigan water crisis.

 

The good news (sic) is China is likely to purchase $2.5 billion worth of California nuts in a year as part of its phase 1 trade deal with the US when it gets signed.

 

The pressure on the fishery is immense..
 

 

[TnRiver46]

6 hours ago, Vilas15 said:

Just because the bass have not gone extinct doesn't mean there are things that can harm them or hurt a fishery. I dont see why investigating and trying to improve the quantity and quality of fish is a bad thing. I'll say that stuff like this can be overblown by TV, etc. and if thats your point ill agree with it.

 

Youre right here, but we could wipe them out if we tried. See the Yangtze river 10 year fishing ban. Bass are lucky we've got regulations and even more so that catch and release is so prevalent.

There are lake trout in the western US that humans have tried to wipe out in a few areas with gill nets. There are still lake trout thriving there

[Bluebasser86]

I heard the Ned Rig was going to kill them all?

[A-Jay]

19 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I heard the Ned Rig was going to kill them all?

Me too ~ 

 It's a conspiracy I tell ya.

A real life conspiracy. 

A-Jay

[J Francho]

14 hours ago, Ratherbfishing said:

Y2K.  Oh wait, that was YEARS ago.  Y3K, then.

You'll laugh, but there are some smaller, lingering issues from this, affectionately call "Y2K20" lol.

[MAN]

I think they will be just fine here in the U.S. with current laws and environmental standards.  I think it will only get better as we continue to clean our waters and air and evolve to more eco friendly fishing tackle.