Big Indiana Bass

Walleye Tourneys Are Big...In Wisconsin

From an interesting study in the journal Recreation, Parks, and Tourism in Public Health comparing the expenditures of tournament anglers in Wisconsin. More specifically, bass, salmon and walleye tournament anglers. During the summer of 2014, they surveyed participants in 15 tournaments for anglers' expenditures in nine categories: housing, grocery stores, restaurants, automobile transportation, boat operation, fishing equipment, boat launch fees, entrance or parking fees, and entertainment. Maybe not surprisingly since it was Wisconsin, but walleye anglers spent the most money (median, $1,562), followed by bass anglers (median, $555) and then salmon anglers (median, $371).

Housing accounted for both bass and walleye anglers' largest expenditure; salmon anglers' listed 'boat operation' as their largest expense. But while cash output varied between tournaments studied, researchers summarized, "It can be concluded that anglers participating in all fishing tournaments spend significant amounts of money."

There were several key factors that contributed the greatest to expenditures per angler. They were;

• High rates of non-local participation
• More time spent in the host community
• More time spent practice fishing
• Higher participation of anglers over the age of 36
• Long tournament durations
• Greater tournament sizes
• The generally positive reputation of the tournament.

We're Still on the Crappie

Commentary (Article) On Invasive Species

A good piece on the issue of invasive species, especially in light of the controversy going on around the Geist Reservoir milfoil treatments.

...Technically speaking, smelt are not an invasive species. Instead, they are classified as a non-native species, a larger category of which invasive species are just a subset. According to a 1999 executive order that established the National Invasive Species Council, an invasive species is a non-native plant or animal “whose introduction does or is likely to cause … harm.” But what counts as “harm”?

...This isn’t just trivia. Invasive species control is always expensive, and you only get the resources to launch a full-court press against a plant or animal — like the hundreds of millions of dollars spent in the last six decades to get sea lamprey populations under control — on the rare and shining occasion when everyone in power agrees on what “harm” is. And so the definition of invasive species has also created fights within the biological sciences.

 

What Happens When Humans Fall In Love With An Invasive Species

Crappie bite is on

We’ve managed over 200 crappie in just the past two weeks. The fall bite has started, and with water temps still hovering around 80 degrees or higher, the bite should only get better.

 

Overlooked Bass Fishery: Lake Michigan

Last year, Illinois DNR electrofished several Lake Michigan harbors in the area, including Calumet Harbor, Jackson Harbor, North Point Marina, Waukegan SOuth Harbor, and the shoreline inside Calumet Harbor. While a variety of species were sampled, it is the smallmouth and largemouth bass most of us are interested in.

In the 2018 survey, 145 Smallmouth Bass were ≥ 7", 118 were ≥ 11", 75 were ≥ 14", and 11 of them were ≥ 17". No trophy-sized (≥ 20") smallmouth bass were sampled. "Largemouth bass were similarly abundant, but longer on average than smallmouth bass," according to the report. Biologists sampled 129 largemouth bass ≥ 8", 109 largemouth ≥ 12", 45 bass ≥ 15", and 1 really nice largemouth ≥ 20". All bass appeared to be of average weight and health.  Lake Michigan adopted a black bass catch-and-release regulation in 1998, which later changed to one black bass over 21 inches in 2004. However, that rule change has not resulted in large increases in either abundance or length of largemouth or smallmouth bass in the areas sampled.

 

* Nearshore Fish Community of Lake Michigan: 2018 Summer Harbor Assessment
  Illinois Department of Natural Resources; Lake Michigan Program
  Rebecca A. Redman

Microplastics in bass and shad

Illinois researchers sampled bass and gizzard shad in two reservoirs to determine the extend of microplastic contamination in freshwater fish. Microplastics are defined as any type of plastic with a size of 5mm or less. Primary microplastics start out that small, and secondary microplastics become that small after breaking down in the environment. Microplastics are now very common in many industrial processes as well as in both cosmetics and clothing.

In the two reservoirs sampled, every bass and shad had some microplastics. In gizzard shad, the smaller the shad, the higher the plastic count. This correlated to their shift in diet as they age, going from planktivores to detritivores. They also found considerably more microplastics in the gills of shad as compared to their guts.

In largemouth bass, there were no differences  in amount of microplastics with changes in size of bass. Researchers also found more microplastics in the gut of bass as compared to their gills. In all cases, there was no relationship to shoreline development patterns.

 

* Microplastic prevalence in two fish species in two U.S. reservoirs
  William Perry, Catherine M. O'Reilly, Raven Hurt

Spot'em and Drop

Had a fun trip recently spotting nice bass on the depthfinder hanging around shad schools and then dropping AirRigs on their head - and they ate it up.