Researchers study bass that stop biting

[WB Staff]

TPWD fisheries biologist Todd Driscoll used a on razor-sharp surgical scalpel to make a 3/4 inch long incision through the abdomen of the fish, just large enough to insert the transmitter. Driscoll says each transmitter has unique frequency and delivers a signal that can be detected up to mile away. (Photo by Matt Williams)

HEMPHILL — Bass anglers are often quick to assume the worst when the fish stop biting on their favorite lake, particularly when the lull seemingly has no end.

Are the fish sick? Did they die? Did they swim to the opposite end of the lake? Or did they simply develop lockjaw?

Anglers at Toledo Bend and Lake Fork have been grumbling about a downward slide in the fishing on their lakes for quite a while. They haven’t been bashful about pitching some questions to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department fisheries scientists, either.

In the middle of November, TPWD’s inland fisheries division launched an intensive research study meant to address angler concerns and learn more about seasonal movements of bass on 182,000-acre Toledo Bend Reservoir. A similar study will get underway in December at Lake Fork.

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