University of Arkansas Receives Largemouth Bass Grant from Game and Fish Commission

Anglers looking for smallmouth bass will soon be able to identify where to locate specific species.

What's Happening: Arkansas Game and Fish Commission will provide University of Arkansas researchers with $ 300,000 over four years to track smallmouth bass varieties.

Why it matters: There are two native varieties, Neosho and Ouachita, that are threatened by another variety introduced to the region, the northern smallmouth bass.

• Breeding has led to hybridization, which could result in extinctions.
• The information collected will help AGFC decide where to focus its wildlife management efforts to conserve native species.

Context: Fishing is one of Arkansas' top outdoor tourist attractions.

• AGFC Metro Estimates More than 113,000 fishermen travel to Arkansas each year, each spending an average of $ 222 per day while in the wild.

Details: Researchers will monitor hybridization by examining samples collected prior to the 1950s, from 1950 to 2005, and live specimens collected in the field.

• After using DNA to help identify specific physical characteristics of each variety, the researchers will create a digital database. It will be used in a very similar way to facial recognition programs, to facilitate the monitoring of native and hybrid varieties of smallmouth bass.