Rise and Fall (and Hopeful Rise) of a Tidal Largemouth Bass Fishery in Potomac River (Maryland, U.S.A.)

Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides catch-and-release fisheries are popular for tidal Potomac River (Chesapeake Bay watershed).  Until recently, hundreds of bass tournaments occurred annually.  Recent declines in catches during summer and fall have led to widespread concern for the fishery.  Uniquely high angling effort and greater than average catch rates between 2008 and 2009 led to increased handling stress, explaining greater annual mortality.  Unfortunately, loss of submerged aquatic vegetation following 2011 contributed to reduced recruitment and population decline.  Outreach by MDDNR to minimize handling stress has been successful with release boat captains and tournament directors, but generally fails to reach many recreational anglers.  Because of that failure, it was investigated whether population size would increase if angling effort was regulated by restricting year-round movement of fish from a subset of highly suitable streams; number of bass increased in those streams, but only marginally increased in the river.  Therefore, a black bass stamp will be proposed to provide all Maryland bass anglers information on minimizing handling stress.