Thursday, The commission will vote on whether or not to increase the limit on spotted bass to 15 per day per angler from Chickamauga Dam to the mouth of South Chickamauga Creek. I expect it to pass.</p>
It's interesting that someone resurrected a thread from a year ago where Carl Guffey was musing about a "slot limit" for Nickajack & Chickamauga. The purpose of a slot limit is to harvest smaller fish leaving more forage for larger fish.</p>
Let me revisit a few points I learned over this past year especially for our newer members.</p>
Where spots, largemouth and smallmouth share the same habitat, the spots tend to dominate and eventually will take over if conditions are right.</p>
"Catch & release" came about because of backlash from the local fishermen who were angry about 100 or so "Pros" descending on their local lake, killing a couple thousand bass, then leaving. It then became popular to be a catch & release bass fisherman.</p>
Bill Reeves, Fisheries Chief for Tennessee, told me that setting a length limit for bass tended to establish an upper limit of sorts. Bass greater than the upper limit were hauled around all day, weighed in, and then released. Many died as a result. Smaller fish were released immediately. Most all of those survived.</p>
Slot limits only work if anglers will keep small fish. The only way we can improve the smallmouth fishing below the dam is to harvest spots. See the article below:</p>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- </p>
Catch-and-release has served anglers well and will continue to do so in the future. However, bass anglers should be willing to use selective harvest as a tool to improve some fisheries. How do you know what lakes need some harvest and what size of fish should be kept?
Lakes with a slot limit will likely benefit from harvest of fish below the slot. Slot limits were chosen by fishery managers because these lakes usually have high bass recruitment with moderate to fast growth rates. Local tournaments on these lakes could keep undersized fish, and after a few tournaments there would probably be enough for a fish fry at the end of the year. It is not a sin to eat a bass, just don't eat the big ones! If the lake you fish does not have a slot limit but provides high catches of small fish and very few large fish, it may help if anglers keep small fish to eat but release the bigger ones. I suggest contacting the district fisheries biologist in your region to get their recommendation on the optimal harvest strategy for specific lakes. Bass anglers have mastered catch-and-release, but we should move into a new era of selective harvest for better management.
Excerpts from:
Managing Bass Fisheries
Past, Present, and Time for Change
By Dr. Mike S. Allen
Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
The University of Florida
</p>
So, for us, harvest the spots and release the LM & SM. BTW, wasn't Spotfest 2007 a lot of fun!!!</p>
It's interesting that someone resurrected a thread from a year ago where Carl Guffey was musing about a "slot limit" for Nickajack & Chickamauga. The purpose of a slot limit is to harvest smaller fish leaving more forage for larger fish.</p>
Let me revisit a few points I learned over this past year especially for our newer members.</p>
Where spots, largemouth and smallmouth share the same habitat, the spots tend to dominate and eventually will take over if conditions are right.</p>
"Catch & release" came about because of backlash from the local fishermen who were angry about 100 or so "Pros" descending on their local lake, killing a couple thousand bass, then leaving. It then became popular to be a catch & release bass fisherman.</p>
Bill Reeves, Fisheries Chief for Tennessee, told me that setting a length limit for bass tended to establish an upper limit of sorts. Bass greater than the upper limit were hauled around all day, weighed in, and then released. Many died as a result. Smaller fish were released immediately. Most all of those survived.</p>
Slot limits only work if anglers will keep small fish. The only way we can improve the smallmouth fishing below the dam is to harvest spots. See the article below:</p>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- </p>
Catch-and-release has served anglers well and will continue to do so in the future. However, bass anglers should be willing to use selective harvest as a tool to improve some fisheries. How do you know what lakes need some harvest and what size of fish should be kept?
Lakes with a slot limit will likely benefit from harvest of fish below the slot. Slot limits were chosen by fishery managers because these lakes usually have high bass recruitment with moderate to fast growth rates. Local tournaments on these lakes could keep undersized fish, and after a few tournaments there would probably be enough for a fish fry at the end of the year. It is not a sin to eat a bass, just don't eat the big ones! If the lake you fish does not have a slot limit but provides high catches of small fish and very few large fish, it may help if anglers keep small fish to eat but release the bigger ones. I suggest contacting the district fisheries biologist in your region to get their recommendation on the optimal harvest strategy for specific lakes. Bass anglers have mastered catch-and-release, but we should move into a new era of selective harvest for better management.
Excerpts from:
Managing Bass Fisheries
Past, Present, and Time for Change
By Dr. Mike S. Allen
Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
The University of Florida
</p>
So, for us, harvest the spots and release the LM & SM. BTW, wasn't Spotfest 2007 a lot of fun!!!</p>
Dad loves them and they make great table fare. Just let me know.
