Alberta Bass?

[FisherGrrrl]

Heres a question I've been thinking about.

Why doesn't Alberta have/stock Bass in any lakes? I understand they are a predator fish and can take over trout ponds but in Ontario, Bass and Muskie all live together and can survive the winter kill.

Anyone have any opinions?

[mooseknuckle]

I believe it's been tried a few times and they just won't take therefore it's not going to happen.

[Jwood 456]

I think Island or Rock Island lake near Athabasca was stocked with smallmouth bass one year and the population died off right away.

[Guitarplayingfish]

Yeah, Ive heard it has something to do with the water.. Bass aren't well suited enough to handle Alberta's climate or something.

[J-C]

Too many idiots would throw them into other lakes they arent supposed to be in. If any did happen to survive sustainable resources would have a serious problem. Bass don't naturally live in Alberta we should protect the species we already have, appreciate what we've got and manage it as best we can. My 2 cents.

[TrollGRG]

First, half the fish in Alberta aren't native to the province so the fact that the bass aren't shouldn't be a problem. In fact if it gets more people out fishing with all the added revenue etc. - it would be good for the rest of the fishing. I would be willing to bet that if there was a bass lake anywhere in the province it would be a mecca for fishermen - you would have to take a ticket to get on the lake or camp nearby.

Second, apparently the water here is too cold for them. They can stock them but the fish die off. I say so what! Stock them every year the same as they do for other species. Fisheries wouldn't have to worry about some nut job transplanting them to another body of water - probably won't live anyway and may clean up some of the other problems like perch. Again, if people are going to fish for them, it is good for everyone.

Who knows? They just may stay alive somewhere. We all know that the experts in the AB government don't know everything (anything?).

[mszomola]

--

[trainerdave]

They have bass in Manitoba and Saskatchewan-Rock,White, Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass in Manitoba-And apparently 3 species in Saskatchewan according to their regs. They have winters which are pretty extreme there. Might be worth doing in a few stocked ponds...

Originally Posted by trainerdave

They have bass in Manitoba and Saskatchewan-Rock,White, Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass in Manitoba-And apparently 3 species in Saskatchewan according to their regs. They have winters which are pretty extreme there. Might be worth doing in a few stocked ponds...

Really nothing to do with winter temps. You need a certain number of days above a certain temp for bass to survive and more importantly reproduce. They didn't flourish in Wabamun so not sure they'd do well anywhere else in Alberta. Not a far drive to BC, enjoy them there.

[mszomola]

I had brought this up last year moving to Calgary from Ontario. I did a lot of research and the history is pretty interesting even when you factor in bass in bc.


All these fish originated from ontario. Bay of quinte gets mentioned alot I was looking into smallies and those are all from the bay .

The problem with our lakes is winter kills, the water temperature here sometimes doesn't even reach spawning temp of around 65 degrees till late summer or maybe never.

So what happens is the fish survive a few goes , fail to spawn , and eventually fizzle out. Could it work ? Yeah I think Newell looks prime for largies but it's overal spit among peoples favor if they approve.


If bass took off here you would see more tournaments and conservation efforts of clubs. We are right near the border to some great bass fishing and events so we could spawn new anglers and reps to involve themselves in qualifiers.

It's a fun thing to be part of but I don't think folks here know of or even care to appreciate this. Kinda more old fashioned , lots of bow river fanatics. And rightfully so , it's some of the best fishing to be had !

But I'm still in bc most weekends fishing bass , I don't care. Walleye is fine but it gets boring dragging up the bottom all summer , I need to mix things up. Overall I think were in a pretty good area . Lots of different types of opportunities surrounding just need to look around and appreciate it.


The introduction of bass in Alberta was attempted . The last known record is from island lake ...


Anyways , even if re introduced i doubt it would effect any fisheries , it's not like a squawfish or asian carp. Bass readily co existing with all different species so I still don't buy the argument that it would hurt fishing , especially when almost everything here is non native , and a lot of reservoirs !

[horsetrader]

I do agree if they could be introduced to breed or stocked in some areas they would add to an already great fishery

[chubbdarter]

Originally Posted by mszomola

I had brought this up last year moving to Calgary from Ontario. I did a lot of research and the history is pretty interesting even when you factor in bass in bc.


All these fish originated from ontario. Bay of quinte gets mentioned alot I was looking into smallies and those are all from the bay .

The problem with our lakes is winter kills, the water temperature here sometimes doesn't even reach spawning temp of around 65 degrees till late summer or maybe never.

So what happens is the fish survive a few goes , fail to spawn , and eventually fizzle out. Could it work ? Yeah I think Newell looks prime for largies but it's overal spit among peoples favor if they approve.

If bass took off here you would see more tournaments and conservation efforts of clubs. We are right near the border to some great bass fishing and events so we could spawn new anglers and reps to involve themselves in qualifiers.

It's a fun thing to be part of but I don't think folks here know of or even care to appreciate this. Kinda more old fashioned , lots of bow river fanatics. And rightfully so , it's some of the best fishing to be had !

But I'm still in bc most weekends fishing bass , I don't care. Walleye is fine but it gets boring dragging up the bottom all summer , I need to mix things up. Overall I think were in a pretty good area . Lots of different types of opportunities surrounding just need to look around and appreciate it.


The introduction of bass in Alberta was attempted . The last known record is from island lake ...


Anyways , even if re introduced i doubt it would effect any fisheries , it's not like a squawfish or asian carp. Bass readily co existing with all different species so I still don't buy the argument that it would hurt fishing , especially when almost everything here is non native , and a lot of reservoirs !

i have nothing against Bass fisherman.....but i'd sure like to see the poll where Albertans are split about stocking Bass in Newell

[Kokanee9]

A poll. Good Idea!
That would help settle this.

[mszomola]

yeah polls a good idea , just want to clarify i didnt mean on Newell , i should have wrote that more clearly .... i meant split in general here ...

sall good , the poll is good and i voted ...

[grinr]

Originally Posted by horsetrader

Just an angry little man...... but thats ok ....have a good one.....

Why yes,yes I am angry,but I'm not little.I am however more than a little angry over watching watershed after watershed ruined by the illegal introduction of invasive bass into my home waters by irresponsible morons to the detrimant of native brook trout and atlantic salmon populations.

Originally Posted by mszomola

To grndr ,

You don't know a damn thing about bass fishing. .

I'll asume I am grndr?
That's ok bud,you just keep telling yerself that.Aside from the fact that I've caught hundreds(a couple thousand?) of bass in both Ontario and NB,I've also made it a point to know my enemy quite well and am actively involved in efforts to eradicate bass from my home salmon/trout waters as well as educating and encouraging others to do the same.I'm afraid it's you and the ignorant fool bucket biologists like you that "don't know a damn thing about bass".Why dontcha take a few minutes on Google to educate yourself on the very real threat posed to native salmonids in NB and NS by invasive,illegal smallmouth introductions before you go running your mouth off.It's better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.

[chubbdarter]

Originally Posted by mszomola

yeah polls a good idea , just want to clarify i didnt mean on Newell , i should have wrote that more clearly .... i meant split in general here ...

sall good , the poll is good and i voted ...

well it appears you are correct about the general vote....im surprized with the voting

[flyfish4life]

There are probably a large number of alberta anglers that would be interested in having a small bass fishery in the province of Alberta. With all the new immigrants from Eastern Canada and B.C. ......I think it is a great idea to have a few lakes in the province turned into largemouth/smallmouth bass fisheries.

What are the options (if any) ?

1. Sign a Petition and present it to Alberta Fish and Wildlife ? Create a banner and /or posters and get people to sign a form or log on to a website to confirm their opinion. Maybe this list would be larger than people would think. I would guess that there are over 500 anglers that would support this idea in this province.

2. Maybe Alberta Fisheries could send a small survey out to every alberta angler that buys a licence. Ask the question - Would you like to see a few lakes with largemouth and small mouth bass available to the alberta angler ?


I find that even the B.C. bass lakes are getting overfished and the amount of large fish in existing lakes are decreasing every year. Alot of locals and albertans still eat bass when they go to B.C. to fish for them. I have seen it so many times and it is depressing. Bass dont get stocked ......... HELLO !!!!!!!!! If you like fishing for them ....................then release them or else you are only hurting yourself and the fishery you enjoy.

If you wanna bragg about the size of your bass...........take some pictures and post them dont eat them.

[huntsfurfish]

If you enjoy fishing for them, go to where the bass are!

No need to bring them here. Should we have asian carp too?

If you want to go shark fishing you go to them right?

[horsetrader]

Originally Posted by huntsfurfish

If you enjoy fishing for them, go to where the bass are!

No need to bring them here. Should we have asian carp too?

If you want to go shark fishing you go to them right?

If you don't like hearing about BASS don't read the posts.......


BRING ON THE BASS ........

[fish gunner]

ask you self this is a mild winter for the most part how many lakes have open water in my local area none. that is just for starters. bass need temps in the mid seventys to spawn and be successful, in my part of the world that only occurs mid july and ends first week of september. giving bass an 8 week growing season not very long. now the rest of the year when they are half asleep they are assaulted by predators left and right. the lakes stocked with bass would grow sum big pike and that's about it .one option I can think of would be power station cooling water ponds. this is a good alternative and could be seriously considered the difficulty would be gaining access for all or using a system requiring training to be on these private waters. I enjoy bass they would pose a much greater challenge in our ever changing weather patterns than most would anticipate. a solution offerd

[BGSH]

Bass love to eat perch and they are friendly with trout so they should stock bass in trout friendly waters with an over population of perch, problem solved

[avb3]

Originally Posted by BGSH

Bass love to eat perch and they are friendly with trout so they should stock bass in trout friendly waters with an over population of perch, problem solved

You obviously don't understand the first thing about conservation issues, with introduced species and the unintended consequences they can have on native species.

Get yourself educated on that first. As someone else said, if you want to go bass fishing, go where the fish are.... they aren't here naturally for a reason.

Quit friggin' with nature.

[npauls]

Originally Posted by BGSH

Bass love to eat perch and they are friendly with trout so they should stock bass in trout friendly waters with an over population of perch, problem solved

Do you know what the number one way in California is to catch bass? Big rainbow trout swimbaits. They stock rainbows down there in bass lakes just for food.

[ESOXangler]

Originally Posted by horsetrader

If you don't like hearing about BASS don't read the posts.......


BRING ON THE BASS ........

Im with this guy!!!! I love bass!!!

[huntsfurfish]

Originally Posted by horsetrader

If you don't like hearing about BASS don't read the posts.......


BRING ON THE BASS ........

If you dont like reading what I have to say dont read my post.......

[horsetrader]

Originally Posted by huntsfurfish

If you dont like reading what I have to say dont read my post.......

I don't mine reading your post they make me smile........