Conservation of Black Bass Diversity: An Emerging Management Paradigm

Abstract

Black bass Micropterus spp. are quintessential North American sportfishes that support economically valuable fisheries and act as keystone predators within aquatic ecosystems. Despite their prominence among North American fish fauna, a number of taxonomic designations are unresolved and novel forms continue to be identified within drainages of the southeastern USA. We review the current understanding of black bass diversity, including distributions, evolutionary histories, and phylogenetic relationships. We also provide a brief overview of the major paradigms that have been applied to black bass management and highlight an emerging focus on the conservation of black bass diversity. Black bass diversity is threatened by anthropogenic land and water use, fragmentation of fluvial habitats, historic and contemporary stocking of non‐native congeners, and climate change. Successful conservation of black bass diversity requires that management agencies prioritize the protection of native species, forms, and lineages within and across jurisdictional boundaries. Collaboration among scientists and resource managers is needed to develop practical ways to ameliorate current problems created by past and present anthropogenic alterations, while also preparing for future challenges like global climate change.

Bridging the Gap between Scientists and Anglers: The Black Bass Conservation Committee's Social Media Outreach Efforts

“…These demographics align with our cause, as bass angling is a male‐dominated sport (USFWS ) and the southeastern states feature the highest diversity of black bass species (Taylor et al. , this issue).…”

“…Most (88%) followers reside in the USA, and the overwhelming majority of them are located in the southeastern USA. These demographics align with our cause, as bass angling is a male-dominated sport (USFWS 1999) and the southeastern states feature the highest diversity of black bass species (Taylor et al 2019, this issue).…”

“…; Taylor et al. , this issue) and gained the attention of many local anglers. Notably, this event was an astounding departure from the usual catch‐and‐release ethic practiced by black bass tournament anglers across the USA (Myers et al.…”

“…are emblematic North American sportfishes that support economically significant fisheries, yet many of the 19 recognized forms are also of conservation concern (Taylor et al. , this issue). The Black Bass Conservation Committee (BBCC) was founded in 2011 within the Southern Division of the American Fisheries Society with a mission of advancing the conservation of black basses within their native ranges by facilitating the sharing of science‐based information on their life histories, threats, and related conservation strategies.…”

Proposed Standard Weight (Ws) Equation and Standard Length Categories for Shoal Bass

“…However, only 31% of the currently described black bass species (sensu Taylor et al. ) have W s equations and size categories.…”