There was a study this past summer and the results were posted in an edition of In-Fisherman I receive every month.  It was about how bass are responding to noise.

 

Bass in clear, open water were the spookiest.  They were more likely to scatter or avoid striking at any sign of danger/noise.  That included sonar pings, outboards, and other noises that aren't natural.

 

Bass around docks were most likely to tolerate noise.  Living under a dock, there's going to be a lot more noise around and above them.

 

Bass in other areas fell somewhere in the middle of these two environments.

 

Just something to keep in mind depending on where you're fishing, water clarity, and pressure.  If there is a variable you can control and minimize your presence, that might be a good idea.

6 hours ago, Glenn said:

Like electrofishing, I feel FFS is a fantastic tool in the hands of biologists.  There's so much that can be learned through both, but each can be equally destructive in the hands of the public.

The negative effects of electrofishing on fish have been well studied and documented.   Studies on the effects of FFS on fish have only just begun and some biologist believe changes in regulations may be needed for some species.  If the science shows FFS is doing damage then something can and should be done.  

 

As for what is fair and sportsmanlike,  that should be left up to the sportsman.  Do we need to talk about using live bait or trolling?

 

There is a great episode of Bass After Dark where they had several biologist discussing the 2025 Black Bass Symposium that is held every 25 years and was held in August.  At 1:22:00 is where they talk about FFS.

 

 

Electro fishing only samples the top of the water column, it really doesn’t tell you much in a lake other than a small sample of what’s there. Decent size class data but the fish can get away from it . Its warm water application is mainly for private ponds.  It is fairly effective in trout streams when doing 3 pass depletions. I participated in these for an entire summer in the great smoky mountains national park. We shocked nearly every brook trout stream in a half million acres, probably only killed 5-6 trout on accident. For 100m sections, we would get 50+ fish the first pass, maybe 20 something the second time, and rarely more than 10 on the third pass. And that’s knee deep water blocked off with nets on both ends, you still don’t catch them all 

@TnRiver46  I saw a TWRA electrofishing boat on Old Hickory lake one day and decided to follow them around to see where they were getting fish.   I followed them for about an hour and did not see them net a single fish.  Apparently they can't catching anything on Old Hickory either.  😆

7 hours ago, Glenn said:

Well @WRB-2.0 we can agree to disagree.  I've lived through all of those technologies, including electrofishing.  But I doubt you'd champion electrofishing as a fair and sportsmanlike technology in the hands of anglers.  

 

Like electrofishing, I feel FFS is a fantastic tool in the hands of biologists.  There's so much that can be learned through both, but each can be equally destructive in the hands of the public.

 

Somebody pray for the musky population. A musky fisherman used to be a diehard thing and it has been for a very long time. The fish of 10,000 casts. A good friend of mine and great angler recently decided to add musky fishing on top of bass. Within a few weeks he was going out and catching 5 musky in an afternoon with ffs. Everyone gets angry about the blaming of the angler and all the work they put in or didn’t. Sure, some of it’s that but what about the fishery? The fish ? What about the fact that now people that used to musky fish will have to cast 30,000 times to catch that fish because they have been changed ? That’s not the same as all the other sonar evolutions. 

@Bandersnatch, those complaining about musky just need to go fishing with @T-Billy

8 hours ago, Glenn said:

Well @WRB-2.0 we can agree to disagree.  I've lived through all of those technologies, including electrofishing.  But I doubt you'd champion electrofishing as a fair and sportsmanlike technology in the hands of anglers.  

 

Like electrofishing, I feel FFS is a fantastic tool in the hands of biologists.  There's so much that can be learned through both, but each can be equally destructive in the hands of the public.

 

Electrofishing isn’t sport fishing it’s a biologist tool to study fish population density. Where is electron fishing allowed by recreational anglers?

I m not a fan of FFS but you can’t put this technology back in box.

Tom

3 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

@Bandersnatch, those complaining about musky just need to go fishing with @T-Billy

 

Or with me.  It's exactly how @Bandersnatch described it here.  I've got 44 hours in this year and 2 fish caught.  Last year it was 1 fish in 50 hours.

 

Take a look at the PMTT results which are primarily in MN & WI.  They prohibit FFS and live bait during the events.  The number of fish caught is very low.  One 40 inch fish in 2 days puts you in the money.

 

I did some of that electrofishing in college too.  The trout stream was exactly how you described it.

6 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

@Bandersnatch, those complaining about musky just need to go fishing with @T-Billy

I'm still catching them good so far, but I'm not a fan of the technology at all. That's not fishing IMO, and it's definitely not a good thing for the fisheries, especially on small waters like we have here in OH.

I can see how FFS impacts suspended off shore fish and those fish have been in a sanctuary zone for decades or since trolling because a lost art.

I would think Lake Trout would be more of a concern than Muskies that tend to locate in cover.

Thinking as a purist using a canoe and fly rod is the ultimate method of catching sport fishing. Adding sonar and modern tackle is what the vast majority of recreational anglers fish today. 
My 1st experience using FFS was an eye opener, we couldn’t get bites at our normal spots and my partner has FFS installed on his boat so we turned it on looking at the area we fished, nothing was there. We then slowly moved the boat bow in a 180 degrees arch and found fish suspended 150’ off shore at 20 ‘ deep. Didn’t know what the fish were so I made a cast with a spoon watching the fish on the screen react, instant hook up and they were bass! We catch several good bass after that using FFS and I posted this 4 years ago….if you are a tournament bass angler you need FFS, it’s a game changer!
Now recreational anglers have FFS, the cat is out of the bag, no putting it back!
Tom

 

14 hours ago, WRB-2.0 said:

Thinking as a purist using a canoe and fly rod is the ultimate method of catching sport fishing.

I spent decades doing just that. If my back would stand it, that would  is still be my preferred method of fishing.

1 hour ago, jbmaine said:

I spent decades doing just that. If my back would stand it, that would  is still be my preferred method of fishing.

I bought my sit-on kayhack specifically to target river smallmouth with my flyrod.  The opportunities it has provided is infinite. The fun is immeasurable!

Fish don’t go to open water for sanctuary. They eat stuff out there (including my topwater)

On 7/1/2025 at 2:05 PM, Bazoo said:

Sometimes the fish either ignore their offering or they run from it.

I recently installed Active Target on my Ranger. I see the same happening. It’s cool to see, but it won’t make me a better fisherman.