The Rain is Back and the Lakes are Rising

Early 2009 was a long dry winter and spring. The lakes were getting low and the ramps were almost unuseable. The rains finally started in May and the lake levels are slowly rising.

The bass are actually shallower than before in many lakes due to the extended water levels flooding the natural vegetation. Hurricane season is here and I'm not looking forward to the winds but the rains are welcome.

River and creek flow and afternoon storms will be sure to stimulate the largemouth in a nice feeding binge. Come on summer and let it pour :)

Bass Fishing Tips and Tactics

Bass fishing is getting very challenging in Florida lakes due to fishing pressure, droughts and fish kills. In order to be successful in catching this species you'll need to learn how to fish shallow, deep, vegetation, and adjust to the various seasons.

Hydrilla, peppergrass and Kissimmee grass are great forms of cover for the largemouth. Depending on what time of year you are fishing will be key to your success rate in fishing these grasses.

Whether you fish shallow or deep is dependant on the current season and temperatures. In general, fish shallow in the spring and fish deep in the summer.

The lures you use are also key to being a good bass fisherman. The type of cover, depth and structure are all keys for a good day on the water.

For details on how to fish for bass check out www.floridabassfishing.us so you can "Do more catching with less fishing!"

Weathers Great for Bass Fishing in Florida

I know I've had hard views on the Florida Bass situation but I'm just concerned that we need to watch what we are doing so we can continue to have one of the best bass fishing areas in the world.

It's hard to be too critical with warm upper 70's weather in January and great fishing in many of the lakes. The Florida Fisheries have really been doing an outstanding job in managing several of my favorite lakes like Walk in Water and Istokpoga. The slot limits and catch limits have really helped in improving both the size and numbers of fish that I have caught in recent years.

So with the New Year 2008, Kudos goes out to the Florida Fisheries for some terrific management of some key bass lakes. I hope it continues on other lakes.

Sincerely,

The Largemouth Herald

Algae Blooms: Another Threat

Algae blooms are another threat to the Florida bass population. The algae helps produce oxygen depleting bacteria which can and has led to massive fish kills. These blooms often occur in the summer months where the water temperature is high and afternoon thunderstorms stir the lake bottom on which the algae feeds.

The primary cause for algae blooms is nutrient enriched water. The algae, which suspends in the water, uses these nutrients to grow and propagate. So where do these nutrients come from? They can come from natural decay of existing lake vegetation, however a major contributor to the nutrients is man made fertilizers. Both agricultural and residential runoff produced during rain showers often end up in the lakes. Many of these fertilizers then settle to the lake bottom until winds stir them up which causes them to suspend in the higher sunlit areas in the lakes water stratification. Then poof, the algae blooms occur.

So what is the state of Florida doing about this? There are several projects going on right now on Lake Okeechobee. Due to the draught, many areas of the lake are dry and the water management team has been dredging up the muck. See this article: http://www.tcpalm.com/tcp/local_news/article/0,2545,TCP_16736_5575660,00.html

This project will not only remove some of the fertilizer contaminated muck, but by removal of this muck the lake bottom will be harder and promote good spawning. Unfortunately, according to the article only 1% of the muck will be removed.

The state has been working on dechannelizing the Kissimmee River canal. What this would do is to revert back from the man made canal to the original Kissimmee River flow. This would let mother nature resume it's natural filtration of the water from the upper lakes into Lake Okeechobee.

What can we do? We need to minimize our use of fertilizer and use it in a way to prevent runoff into our river/lake systems. If we don't start soon, say goodbye to our fishery and hello to pea green lake water.

Sincerely,

The Largemouth Herald
www.floridabassfishing.us
www.floridabasslakes.com
www.floridabassfishing.us/fishinggear

The infamous "Craterfish"

Craterfish are depleting the spawning grounds of the Florida largemouth bass. What's a "craterfish"? It's my nickname for the tilapia and I call it that because they leave huge 2-3 foot craters when they spawn. These craters are readily visible in high numbers during their spawn, just check out your local pond and look near the shore.

The craterfish generally use similar sandy type bottoms that the largemouth bass does. When I fish during the spring, many of the largemouth spawning grounds I used to fish are now littered with craterfish beds. I see many fewer largemouth beds in those locations. I believe the craterfish are very aggressive during the spawn and simply chase the bass away.

So what does the bass do after they get chased away? I believe they try to find a shallow, less populated area, or try to spawn in deeper water. The problem with this are two fold. 1- The shallower, less populated areas usually have a muddy/silted bottom which will not promote a good hatch. 2- The deeper beds will have less sunlight exposure therefore a lower hatch rate.

It wouldn't be so bad if the tilapia would bite like a bass, but they don't. I believe they feed on the microscopic organisms and very small creatures. They just are not a good sports fish!

If we want a good largemouth population in Florida, the state needs to fund some research in how we can control the craterfish population. Here's some of my ideas to control them, 1-Perhaps investigate genetically infiltrating the fish with infertile hybrids, 2- An all year bowfishing season on them, 3- Unlimited netting of them by sports fishermen or commercial.

Whatever the method, if something doesn't happen real soon, we can kiss our bass goodbye! You can get a direct link to this blog at http://www.floridabasslakes.com/


Also check out http://www.floridabassfishing.us






KudoSurf Me!

Demise of the Florida Bass Fishery

My first day as a "Blogger". I wanted to display my distaste for many things I see happening to the Florida Bass Fishery as I am an avid bass fisherman. For example, within the last week or so, a large well known bass organization sponsored a tournament that was held on the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes near Orlando. After the bass were released, a fish kill was seen with over a hundred dead fish! Check out this link for more information http://lledit.us.publicus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070511/COLUMNISTS0603/705110412/1016/SPORTS09

I love fishing bass tournaments, but what happened here? Were there no aerated tanks at the weigh in? Were the fish released in a low oxygenated area like a canal? Were all the contestants allowed to bring their fish to the weigh scales at the same time? Something was definitely done wrong here as most catch and release tournaments have a less than 10% mortality. I think Florida bass clubs do a much better job than this! I hope there will be a letter of apology from the organization as well as what will be done in the future to prevent this kind of thing! I'm not a PETA type, but I want our fishery to continue for both me and future genrations! I have a direct link to this blog at http://www.floridabasslakes.com/


Check out my new site at http://www.floridabassfishing.us

My next post will talk about the "craterfish" that's really hurting our bass fishery!