Native SMB

In the mongo thread there is a mention of introducing SMB to the Root River via the railroads. So the natural question for me is whether SMB are native to any river (or lake) in the midwest?

I had always assumed they are native species…if they aren’t does this put them in the same class as carp??? ;-P

SMB were native to the Mississippi river system and therefore NOT introduced into the root….. they did stock a lot of lakes that were landlocked… plus SMB are a north american species and was native within this areas aquatic ecosystems with local speicies evolved to relate to them….. carp are european…. and displaced native species instead of having their own niche….

Unless there is a historical conflict, the info I read concerning the smallmouth introduction, laid claim that the smallmouth were/are not native to the midwest. To clarify, if I stated it wrong, I never intended to imply that smallies were stocked in the Root.

Edited by Jim W on 06/20/01 10:24 AM.

I think the two of you are on the same page, just said differently. The Mississippi could have native SMB without the fish being classed as “native midwest”. But after the introduction to other lakes and such, it became part of the midwest.

I just quoted what I learned in college… I copied the below clip from the Mn DNR web site, it accurately portrays the situation of introduction vs native…..

The smallmouth is native to the Mississippi watershed. It is abundant throughout the limestone stream of the Root and Zumbro drainages that are too warm to support trout. It is found in the boulder tributaries of the Mississippi in central Minnesota (such as the Kettle and Snake). The Mississippi itself holds large smallmouth bass as far north as Brainerd. Farther north, river smallmouth become increasingly scarce, though they occupy stretches of the St. Louis, Cloquet and Whiteface rivers.

The smallmouth also is native to many central Minnesota lakes, through it is far less common in this environment than the largemouth. The keys to their presence in these waters are clear water and suitable spawning gravel and rubble.

During the late 1800’s smallmouth were valued nearly as highly as trout and salmon and were transplanted to new watersheds with great fervor but little accurate record keeping. So biologist have been left to study historical records and postglacial drainage patterns to determine the presettlement range of the fish. Smallmouth bass probably are not native to the lakes that provide some of the best smallmouth fishing in the state, including Lake of the Woods, Rainy, Namakan, Vermillion and the large border lakes of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness

ohhhh and one more thing they had.. was on the subject of smallmouth migration…..Recent studies in northern latitudes have revealed that stream smallmouth may migrate much more than previously supposed. In the fall, as the water temperature drops below 60 degrees, smallmouth may migrate 50 miles or more, moving a dozen miles in a single day, to find their “hibernacula.” These winter resting areas may be deep pools in a stream, or bass may desert a creek entirely, finding refuge in a larger river. There they crowd together and remain lethargic and eat little through the winter.

Thanks RiverEyes! That clearly answers my question. The combined comments about Mississippi watershed and migration make sense to me. We’ve caught smallies in a farmland stream that is 6-8 feet wide on occasion. I wondered how/why they got there (always thought they’ed freeze out in winter).

Gee Re, I think I’m all outa questions now……………thanks alot!