Pond Boss Mag Sept-Oct 2018 - you need to get it !!!

THE CUTTING EDGE � SCIENCE REVIEW

Largemouth Bass genetic sub-species questions


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Another type of question relates to the mixing of Florida (FLMB) and Northern (NLMB) Largemouth Bass genes and how they relate to the catchability problem noted above.
Another recent study titled Subspecies Composition of Angled and Electrofished Largemouth Bass in Texas Reservoirs, Dijar J. Lutz-Carrillo, and Spencer Dumont in Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Southeast Association of Fish and Wildlife. Agencies 66:75�81, 2012 Proc.., addresses in part this type of question.

The study�s results provide biologists with a provocative concept that, in southern waters (natural integrated zone of FLMB and NLMB), FLMB likely are more difficult to angle than NLMB, but the phenotype (genetic trait) of reduced angler susceptibility (catchability) is mitigated (reduced) by introgression (genetic mixing), even at low levels of NLMB genes.

Even when there were roughly twice as many NLMB in the survey as FLMB the cross population showed almost 50% Florida genetics. In one instance where there was roughly 15 times the number of NLMB as FLMB the cross population showed 29% Florida genetics. The number of crosses in the tests far outnumbered either FLMB or NLMB. So under these conditions in Texas waters over time the FLMB genetics tend to dominate. This does not mean every FLMB trait is dominant. Note that when pure FLMB were removed from the dataset numbers (leaving only crosses with high levels of FLMB genetic influence) the trait of reduced catchability greatly dissipated. Stated differently the addition of only a small amount of NLMB genetics caused poor catchability to become much less pronounced.
In addition I recall TPWD data also showing many of the share-a-lunker fish were high FLMB percentage crosses. So at low rates the NLMB genes don�t seem to reduce growth and size in the crosses.