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CONCORD, N.H. — Anglers fishing Lake Winnipesaukee are being asked to watch for largemouth and smallmouth bass tagged as part of a New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Warmwater Fisheries Management Program study. Data collected from tagged bass will allow biologists to examine bass movement after release from bass tournament weigh-ins held on Lake Winnipesaukee. The study began during the summer of 2007.
“Angler captures of tagged bass are the major source of information for this study, so please ask ALL anglers you know to be on the lookout for tagged bass when they fish Lake Winnipesaukee and send the N.H. Fish and Game Department the requested information when they do catch a tagged bass,” says Gabe Gries, Fisheries Biologist and Warmwater Program Project Leader.
“So far we have collected recapture information on more than 200 tagged bass. Although most fish have been recaptured only once, there are some bass that have been recaptured two and even three times since being tagged,” says Gries. Although the data will not be formally analyzed until the winter, information gathered so far indicates that fish released after bass tournament weigh-ins move as little as a few hundred yards to as far as twelve miles from their release location. The average distance moved by bass after release is approximately four miles.
Recent updates on recaptured tagged bass, including date of release, date of recapture, and distance moved can be found at: www.wildlife.state.nh.us/Fishing/fisheries_management/Bass_Movement_Updates.html.
For more information on the study and to report information from tagged bass, contact Gabe Gries, N.H. Fish and Game Region 4, 15 Ash Brook Court, Keene, NH 03431; phone 603-352-9669; or email gabe [dot] gries [at] wildlife [dot] nh [dot] gov.
More information and a data reporting form can also be found at: www.wildlife.state.nh.us/Fishing/fisheries_management/Bass_Movement_Study.html.
