Pond Boss Forums Thread Like Summary - Pro bass angler: Bass harvest unnecessary

Pro bass angler Randy Blaukat makes the case that anglers do not need to harvest LMB for a healthy fishery. He bases this not only on his years of fishing, but also his management of a 40 acre private lake.

Interesting, as Blaukat contradicts everything pondmeisters are told here. Trying to keep an open mind, but it's hard for me to buy what he's selling. Anyway, here's his video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AV0AWuUA54

If you don't have a 40 acre pond, disregard what Randy said. His experience with one pond doesn't mean he's an expert on pond management. I occasionally look at his YouTube channel, but I never seem to finish the videos. I'll leave it at that.

As you know I strongly support harvest in private water. But public water presents challenges because other than length limits nothing truly manages harvest. In private water we often are working with length limits to but also with harvest weight objectives. This is easily controlled in private water ... but not so easily in public water. Public water can be over harvested. If you were able to listen to the last few minutes (beginning about 14:36), I think you might agree with him as he provided context that he thought limited harvest could be practiced. For some reason the video started midway so I didn't get the part of his private water management but if he applies harvest discipline like he mentioned in the latter part of the video ... it seems reasonable depending his objectives for the water.

While I highly encourage harvest all the time ... I never practice it with LMB in the public water I fish around here. There are so many people keeping LMB that the numbers are truly insufficient to maintain quality fisheries either for BG or LMB. They really get dinged so I release all of them and fish for them for the sole purpose of hoping I am helping to make them hook smart. I keep reasonable numbers of small BG just to help with BG predation and to snack with my kids.

I watched that video a few days ago. Made me wonder if ol boy has ever considered the damage done by tournament anglers.

Flopping their fish onto the boat deck, weighing and sticking a cull pin in their jaw, tossing em in the deadwell, hauling em around
all day, then stuffing them into a bag for the big weigh-in spectacular. Top that off with turning them all loose in the cove the
tournament ran from. None of that stuff is good for a fish, and I'm sure that it causes a great deal of post-release mortality.

One thing is certain and proven in hundreds of studies and observations - maintaining balance in a natural pond or lake (unmanaged) over time with BG and LMB + others is highly unlikely. Balance in those situations is the aberration. There are no set in stone rules for every pond or lake as each is different. However the normal status in unmanaged LMB/BG ponds is the unbalanced state.

There are a number of studies on LMB/SMB bed fishing and there are big differences by location. Bed fishing up north is much more of an issue in the studies - in the south not so much on a whole population basis. Also water fertility is a factor - highly fertile waters (productive) are less at risk with bed fishing. In ponds that tend to be LMB crowded bed fishing for LMB can be a good tool for reducing the LMB population. So it depends - and that is why I am not overly concerned with one pro bass fisherman's opinion of "best fishing" or what is good and bad wrt private lakes/ponds.