Research Document - 2014/073

 Results of a Multi-year Control and Eradication Program for Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus dolomieu) in Miramichi Lake, New Brunswick, 2011-2012

By Michel Biron, Marie Clément, Dave Moore, and Gérald Chaput

Abstract

Efforts to eradicate Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus dolomieu) in Miramichi Lake removed a total of 523 Smallmouth Bass in 2011 and 46 Smallmouth Bass in 2012, compared to 2,584 Smallmouth Bass in 2010. The fishing effort using boat electrofishing, gillnetting and fyke-netting more than doubled in 2011 and 2012, compared to 2010, and the catch-per-unit-effort declined by 99% at the end of the 3 year program. More than 90% of Smallmouth Bass captured and removed from Miramichi Lake were young-of-the-year. The oldest Smallmouth Bass captured was aged 11 years old and belonged to the cohort of 2000. Overall, boat and backpack electrofishing, beach seining and fyke-netting were successful at capturing young-of-the-year while Smallmouth Bass age 1 and older were successfully captured by boat electrofishing (particularly the adults during the spawning season), gillnetting, fyke-netting and angling. The results from the second and third year of the Multi-year Control and Eradication Program are very encouraging since it supports the successful depletion and containment of Smallmouth Bass in Miramichi Lake but eradication has not been achieved yet as demonstrated by the presence of all the life stages of that species in 2012. It is anticipated that elevated fishing effort would be required in future years to capture and remove the last Smallmouth Bass from Miramichi Lake.

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