1997 BAIT Report B.A.I.T.
Bass Anglers Information Team
1997
Annual Report
by
Stanley F. Cook and James J. McHugh
Alabama Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
INTRODUCTION
The printing of the 1997 B.A.I.T. annual report marks the twelfth year of the B.A.I.T. program. The objective of the program since it’s inception has always been to gather information on bass populations by combining the efforts of bass club members and state fisheries scientists. The B.A.I.T. program summarizes catch data already being collected by participating clubs on reservoir bass populations.
These results are used by state fisheries scientists in combination with data from other sources as a basis for fisheries management decisions. Bass anglers use the report to establish future tournament sites or to locate a reservoir that provides a particular type of fishing action. Through 1997, we have summarized 5,227 tournament reports. B.A.I.T team anglers have spent 1,324,792 hours collecting data for this program. They have contributed data from 312,171 bass that weighed 527,672 pounds.
METHODS
Every year we attempt to maintain the support of the previous year's clubs and to enlist the support of new clubs through public meetings, news releases and letters. Participating club officers or tournament directors are sent the previous year's annual report, with tournament report postcards to be completed following each tournament. Clubs are assigned individual numbers to insure confidentiality. As tournament cards are received, they are checked for accuracy and entered into a computer database. Club officers are contacted when data are suspected to be erroneous. We compile and analyze the data following receipt of December tournament reports. Statewide tournament results are sorted by reservoir and by club.
To rank reservoirs, five "fishing quality" indicators were used: percent of successful anglers (percent of anglers with one or more bass at weigh-in), bass average weight, number of bass per angler-day, pounds of bass per angler-day, and hours required to catch a bass five pounds or larger. Since the length of a fishing day varies between tournaments, an angler-day is defined as 10 hours of fishing effort. A minimum of five tournaments for an individual reservoir is considered necessary for minimum confidence in each reservoir dataset. Reservoirs with five or more tournament reports are ranked for each of the quality indicators. Values are assigned to each rank and an overall rank is determined for each reservoir by summing the values of the five quality indicators.
This ranking system is intended to be a quick reference for club tournament site selection. It does not constitute a "best and worst" list of Alabama reservoirs and should not be interpreted that way.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Bass clubs submitted 586 tournament reports during 1997, a 19 % increase from last year's 493 reports. An important factor for this growth was the invitation to participate letters sent to Alabama B.A.S.S. Federation clubs. Club representatives did an excellent job filling out the cards and few reports were rejected due to incomplete or erroneous information. Sixty-two clubs or tournament organizations provided data in 1997.
One Hundred and seventy-two reports from Alabama waters were received from Dr. Carl Quertermus of the University of West Georgia, who summarizes tournament data from the Georgia B.A.S.S. Federation, and 16 reports from Tennessee clubs that fish Alabama waters from Tennessee wildlife Resource Agency. Without their support, several Alabama reservoirs would not have been well represented in the quality indicator rankings (Table 2). Once again we must stress that reports from more locations increase the capability of the summaries to reflect actual fish population conditions and not just a good or poor day's fishing by one or two clubs.
In 1997, tournament reports were received for 30 bodies of water that were fished 146,714 hours. B.A.I.T. anglers caught 29,980 bass (12 inches and larger) that weighed 55,091 pounds (Table 1). A total of 416 bass five pounds and larger were reported for an overall catch rate of one 5 pound bass or larger for every 291 hours of fishing (an increase from last year's 265 hours). The number of bass over 8.0 pounds increased from 11 in 1996 to 17 in 1997 (Table 5). The largest bass weighed 12.25 pounds and was caught in Harris Reservoir on the Tallapoosa River. Although Weiss ranked fourth in 1997, it produced more bass (73) 5 pounds and larger than any other reservoir.
Statewide catch rates in 1997 for number and pounds of fish were similar to rates recorded since 1993 (Figure 1). Eleven lakes improved in overall fishing success, 15 lakes recorded declines and four lakes remained about the same (Appendix A). Except for Smith and Harris Reservoirs, declines were probably caused by natural fluctuations in bass abundance and size structure.
Of the 62 clubs or tournament organizations that submitted data during 1997, 50 submitted five or more tournament reports, a large increase from last year's 30 clubs. Forty-two clubs submitted 10 or more reports a large increase from last year's 13 (Table 3). Lack of full reporting by some clubs remains a limiting factor in this program, but participation is improving. Six contributors submitted only one report as compared to 19 last year. All club representatives should understand that every tournament report is important if this program is to continue to be successful. A list of clubs contributing tournament results for the 1997 B.A.I.T. report is presented in Table 4.
More tournament reports were received from Weiss (56) than from any other location. West Point (54) and Logan Martin (47) followed in second and third. Eufaula, Guntersville, Harris, Martins Millers Ferry, Mobile Delta, Neely Henry and Pickwick each had 20 or more tournament reports (Table 1). Distribution of tournament reports across reservoirs remained the same as in 1996. Eleven lakes were represented by 20 or more reports again 1997. A good distribution of reports provides more representative catch statistics from which meaningful summaries can be prepared.
Of the 30 reservoirs from which reports were received, 28 (93%) had five or more tournament reports (Table 1). The following comments deal with these 28 reservoirs which are ranked by quality indicators in Table 2. The percent of successful anglers (those with one or more fish) ranged from 50 at Wilson to 84 at Logan Martin and Martin. The average weight of bass caught ranged from 0.95 at Smith (13-16 inch slot limit) to 2.95 at Eufaula (16-inch size limit, Table 1). The statewide average weight was 1.84 pounds; approximately the same since 1989. Catch rates expressed as bass per angler-day ranged from 0.96 at Wilson to 3.21 at Logan Martin. Catch rate as pounds per angler-day ranged from 1.07 at Smith to 5.35 at Neely Henry.
Overall, Demopolis accumulated more quality-indicator points than any other reservoir in Alabama, replacing Weiss from last year. Weiss (58 tournaments placed second and Neely Henry (38 tournaments) came in third. Readers should note that the primary intent of Table 2 is not to determine the overall "best" reservoir, but to characterize the fishery of each reservoir. For example, look at the rankings for Demopolis. Demopolis Reservoir received the highest "overall" ranking, but there were only five tournaments that were held during the year while the next three highest ranked reservoirs had significantly more tournaments held throughout the year. This is not meant to imply that Demopolis Reservoir would not be an excellent site to fish. The more reports received and analyzed the more accurate are the summaries Therefore, Demopolis should not be given the label as the "best" just simply one of the best. Of greater importance to most tournament anglers is pounds per angler-day and as reported previously, Neely Henry was the best.
As more bass populations are managed with length limits in our state, the effects of these restrictions on harvest are expressed in the results of the B.A.I.T. report. Length limits are imposed to increase the number of fish below a minimum length or within a specified length range (slot limit). Because all minimum lengths and length ranges will be above the 12-inch limit fished in most tournaments, they will reduce the total harvest in numbers and pounds. However, those fish weighed in will be larger (longer) by virtue of the minimum length or slot limit.
In the B.A.I.T. report, length limit lakes will always rank high for average weight and near the bottom for percent success, bass per angler-day, and pounds per angler-day. For instances bass per angler-day averages 2.04 statewide but is roughly half of that at West Point, Wilson and Eufaula. Statewide, average weight in 1997 was 1.84 pounds for all 30 reservoirs but at Wilson, Demopolis, Guntersville, West Point and Eufaula average weight was over 2.0 pounds. The average weight of bass 12 inches and longer has not increased in these populations. The average weights are higher only because the fish weighed in are longer.
Length limits remained in effect during 1997 on Eufaula and West Point (16-inch minimum), Wilson and Guntersville (15-inch minimum), Demopolis (14-inch minimum), Pickwick (14-inch minimum on smallmouth), and Harris and Smith (13 to 16-inch slot). All quality indicators improved at Guntersville during the fourth year of the 15-inch minimum length limit. Quality indicators have stabilized at Eufaula following the installation of the 16-inch limit. Wilson showed a negative response to the length limit in that average weight, bass per angler-day and pounds per angler-day declined in 1997. Demopolis showed very positive signs after the second year of a 14-inch length limit. Bass per angler-day increased, average weight of each bass decreased slightly and pounds per angler-day increased. This is an indication that bass larger than 14 inches are increasing after only two years of length restrictions. Sampling in 1998 should determine if this is true.
Quality indicators declined at Harris during the fourth year of the slot. A significant effort to harvest 12 to 13-inch bass from Harris by some bass clubs did occur. However, the effort to remove small bass has to increase if Harris is to experience major improvements. Smith's bass population showed declines in bass and pounds per angler-day while average weight increased. This is expected during the early years of a slot limit. Quality indicators are expected to get worst before they improve when a slot limit is implemented. Finally, another problem with examining Smith's quality indicator points is the low number of tournaments reported each year.
Graphs in Appendix A provide you with a historical record of how your favorite waters have performed in the B.A.I.T. program since 1986. A few words of caution, these graphs are not restricted to bodies of water with five or more tournaments. Data points for some years may be represented by only one tournament or completely absent in some cases. However, those situations are restricted to those water bodies that generally have not been included in the quality indicator rankings.
Secondly, when comparing water bodies, be aware that the scale on the vertical axes have maximum ranges that vary. You can use these graphs to predict 1998 fishing by looking for trends. For instance, Cedar Creek, Demopolis, Guntersville, Harding, Little Bear, Logan Martin, Neely Henry and Lake Tuscaloosa showed improvements in fishing quality indicators in 1997. Noticeable declines in fishing quality were seen at Coffeeville, Harris, Holt, Jones Bluff, Jordan Lay, Millers Ferry, Mobile Delta, Pickwick, Smith and Wilson.
Funded in part by the Federal Aid to Sportfish Restoration Program
Alabama DJ/WB Project F-38 |
