Michigan Largemouth Bass Record ?

[A-Jay]

On 6/8/2019 at 3:58 PM, A-Jay said:

I have not seen nor heard of a verified Double Digit green bass from Michigan.  May not mean it hasn't happened, just that during this period in time where news travels far & wide in seconds, if it has, that angler should be admired for the self discipline they possess for telling absolutely no one.  Other wise, I believe we'd have heard about it.  

 Also we may see a Michigan Brown bass over 10 lbs before a Green one is caught. 

 

A-Jay

 

Over 4 Years later and I'm still confident in my above position. 

I have Zero problem admitting I am way far from a DD bass expert,

I have caught and seen others catch a few up to and including 11+ lbs. 

All done more than half a continent south of Michigan. 

A 12 lb plus bass from this state seems like triple powerball odds to me.   

I've only ever seen ONE that size. 

Seemed unreal at the time as I had nothing else to compare it to.

And while I was super glad to have been in the boat, I didn't catch it. 

https://youtu.be/CkW-lxMZcok?feature=shared

If & when a MI basshead does actually top the current state record LMB,

I really hope they either never tell a soul,

or do the due diligence required in this day & age

of " undeniable proof", to have it recognized accordingly.

Fish Hard

A-Jay

[MIbassyaker]

I don't actually doubt that there could be some DD largemouths swimming around in Michigan waters.  The issue is finding one and catching it...which nobody seems to have done in decades.  I don't see that changing unless something else changes.  A private, unpressured pond with exceptional forage and gene pool would seem to be the ticket. 

 

The smallmouth situation is different because great lakes goby infestation, which has supercharged their growth rate.  Gobies get into some of the inland lakes with connecting waters, but those are also mostly smallmouth habitat.  I would bet a confirmed 10lb smallmouth is caught before a 10lb largemouth.

 

As for new lakes, we don't really get new lakes around here unless it's a private or residential pond. The majority of those are small, shallow, and vulnerable to winterkills and oxygen deprivation. Most of our waters are natural lakes of glacial origin, and, if anything, the current trend is toward removing dams rather than adding them.  I don't know what the current status of Sanford lake is, but if/when it gets refilled, maybe that's an opportunity.

 

Quite a lot of trout stocking happens here already, even in a number of waters with good largemouth populations -- I can think of 2 or 3 small lakes in my area that, until very recently, got annual plant of rainbows for many years. I have caught some nice largemouths in these lakes, but they are certainly not giant factories.  The presence of trout could help in conjunction with other factors, but that's not going to do it by itself.

 

 

 

[Blue Raider Bob]

    Just a question regarding the invasive Goby's........Will the Goby's work their way inland through the river systems to at some point reach LMB habitat? Well, maybe more than one question. Do the Goby's have a temperature tolerance level that will enable them to survive in prime LMB habitat?

Just really curious because we do not have Goby's here in the southland.

     Our biggest invasive species is the group of Asian Carps that habitate our large river systems. I do not know the effect these Carp have on LMB, although it seems like it would be a great food resource before the Carp can reach uneatable sizes. The Carps are an open water species, but then so are the Shad the Three species of Black Bass use.

[Reel]

I fish for largemouth where gobies are very numerous ( St-Lawrence river system) and this has not caused the largemouth to grow to larger size.  Even if this is a river, it's similar to Michigan waters.  Here a six pound largemouth is a really good fish.  I fished tournaments for a while and never saw a seven pounder weighted.

[RipzLipz]

@Blue Raider Bob Some interesting round goby info & range found here:

 

https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID=713

 

Keep an eye on that shaded area in IL - Kankakee River which feeds into Mississippi. MI anglers please correct me if incorrect but given that gobies are nest raiders, I would suspect LMB aren’t spawning in as rocky areas as SMB, which is preferred goby habitat, so the LMB haven’t yet adopted a kill at all cost reaction quite like the SMB have.

[TnRiver46]

There have been zero juvenile Asian carp found in TN, it’s all large adults swimming thru the locks. Apparently they don’t successfully spawn here 

[A-Jay]

It's like a Scooby Snack for Brown Bass.

#shaggyapproved

A-Jay

[MN Fisher]

4 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

It's like a Scooby Snack for Brown Bass.

Now if I can get the greenies to munch on my Zoom Gobies when I use a drop-shot.

 

[Blue Raider Bob]

18 hours ago, RipzLipz said:

@Blue Raider Bob Some interesting round goby info & range found here:

 

https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID=713

 

Keep an eye on that shaded area in IL - Kankakee River which feeds into Mississippi. MI anglers please correct me if incorrect but given that gobies are nest raiders, I would suspect LMB aren’t spawning in as rocky areas as SMB, which is preferred goby habitat, so the LMB haven’t yet adopted a kill at all cost reaction quite like the SMB have.

Thanks for the article. What is staggering is the "Density in some area exceeds 20 per sq.meter."

WOW!

[RipzLipz]

@Blue Raider Bob No problem bud. I also found a couple of things which were a bit staggering to me:

 

"They can spawn every 20 days from April to September…"

"Under normal circumstances male Smallmouth Bass guard nests and are effective in deterring gobies. When males are removed, gobies immediately invade and have been shown to eat up to 4,000 eggs within 15 minutes."

[Blue Raider Bob]

4 hours ago, RipzLipz said:

@Blue Raider Bob No problem bud. I also found a couple of things which were a bit staggering to me:

 

"They can spawn every 20 days from April to September…"

"Under normal circumstances male Smallmouth Bass guard nests and are effective in deterring gobies. When males are removed, gobies immediately invade and have been shown to eat up to 4,000 eggs within 15 minutes."

Rip, that is the one reason I never fish for spawning fish of any species. In my pond, I witness the male LM's surround the fry schools and constantly have to chase away the BG. They are bombarded on all sides and never get a break. When the fry get bigger, the yearling LM join the BG in harassing the male guarding. If the male gets drawn too far away, a juvenile LM will crash the fry. 

[RipzLipz]

@Blue Raider Bob I’ve never witnessed what you describe but I do not doubt it. What I have seen in the clearer waters of the strip pits I frequent is small bass attacking a ball of bass fry, with the guarder going nuts trying to fend off the attacks. Reminded me of tuna torpedoing through a school of baitfish on TV documentaries.

[Blue Raider Bob]

16 hours ago, RipzLipz said:

@Blue Raider Bob I’ve never witnessed what you describe but I do not doubt it. What I have seen in the clearer waters of the strip pits I frequent is small bass attacking a ball of bass fry, with the guarder going nuts trying to fend off the attacks. Reminded me of tuna torpedoing through a school of baitfish on TV documentaries.

You've described exactly what I was attempting to describe. Poor daddy largemouth never gets a break. If it isn't the BG, it's the small LM. Fortunately, some survive. I wonder what the mortality rate for the dad's is? It's non-stop, all day and night for a couple weeks.

[softwateronly]

On 12/20/2023 at 12:24 PM, Blue Raider Bob said:

    Just a question regarding the invasive Goby's........Will the Goby's work their way inland through the river systems to at some point reach LMB habitat? Well, maybe more than one question. Do the Goby's have a temperature tolerance level that will enable them to survive in prime LMB habitat?

Just really curious because we do not have Goby's here in the southland.

     Our biggest invasive species is the group of Asian Carps that habitate our large river systems. I do not know the effect these Carp have on LMB, although it seems like it would be a great food resource before the Carp can reach uneatable sizes. The Carps are an open water species, but then so are the Shad the Three species of Black Bass use.

 

Most evidence up here points to gobies being a net positive for both lm/sm bass, and all gamefish really.  They're omnivores, but I think they're also the only thing eating zebra mussels.  So with both of these invasives, we get closer to a "balance" and the game fish get a new, successful, protein rich prey.

 

The asian carp thing seems to have more possibility to harm a fishery from what I've read.  Their voracious appetite and breeding success seem to change the ecosystem from the bottom up and they outgrow their prey size very fast, and greatly reduce the habitat for other prey species to remain successful.

 

scott

 

edit: without gobies, I think our northern fisheries would be in much more peril due to the zebra mussel over-filtering.

[TnRiver46]

2 hours ago, Blue Raider Bob said:

You've described exactly what I was attempting to describe. Poor daddy largemouth never gets a break. If it isn't the BG, it's the small LM. Fortunately, some survive. I wonder what the mortality rate for the dad's is? It's non-stop, all day and night for a couple weeks.

It’s a fish eat fish world out there, why is the fry more valuable than a juvenile largemouth that’s eating the fry ? The juvenile has already beat some odds . 
 

luckily our feelings don’t amount to a hill of beans in the wild ecosystems 

[WackyWormNedRig]

Unsure about Michigan but I’ve seen some monster and I mean monster bass in Lake Michigan downtown Chicago. One was so big I thought it was a carp 

[J Francho]

The recent catches in Cayuga (both LMB and SMB records) tell me that it is possible one is swimming around in Michigan waters. We've had some fairly warm winters for a decade or more and there's plenty of forage as well as ideal water conditions. I hope @A-Jay catches it.