Microsatellite Analysis of Trophy Largemouth Bass from Arkansas Reservoirs

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) has introduced Florida largemouth bass (FLMB; Micropterus salmoides floridanus) to water bodies historically containing the northern largemouth bass (NLMB; Micropterus salmoides salmoides) subspecies since the late 1970s in an attempt to produce a trophy LMB fishery. Since 2006, the AGFC has been biannually sampling reservoirs stocked with FLMB to determine levels of admixture. Here, total sampling efforts between 2006 and 2011 have been combined, and LMB heavier than 2,268 g (5 lb) were analyzed in an effort to investigate distribution of bass by their genetic composition designated as trophy LMB by the AGFC. Of the 148 trophy LMB sampled, 123 possessed FLMB alleles (83.1%). Thirty-two of the heaviest 50 (64.0%) LMB sampled, including a potential state record that was nullified, were genetically confirmed to be FLMB. Distributions of trophy bass within reservoirs were preferentially represented by Fx-FLMB and FLMB.