In last month’s article, I brought up an issue that’s been on my mind for a couple of years now. I wondered, “Has the spotted bass population in Lake Martin changed in recent years?” The numbers of Alabama Spotted Bass in Lake Martin seem to be as high as I’ve ever seen; yet, there seems to have been a decrease in the numbers of big spots (3 pounds and up for Lake Martin). Is that really the case, and if so, why? An attempt to answer the question last month yielded several possibilities but no concrete explanation.
I reached out to a good friend and biologist with Alabama’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Damon Abernethy. Abernethy has nearly 20 years of experience with the agency that frequently does population studies on the fisheries in Alabama. I sent him a copy of last month’s article with fingers crossed that I wasn’t too far off the rails.
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