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Where Have All the Bass Gone?

By Ant Williams

There was a time through the 1990s and even into the new millennium where Zimbabwe’s bass fishery was considered among the best in the world. Local and even All-Africa bass records fell regularly, with most of these fish coming from private impoundments, or farm dams. Some predicted we might have the stock and conditions to produce the next coveted world record fish, and certainly this seemed attainable as local record fish edged toward the twenty pound mark.

That this bass fishery spawned considerable industry around it, is undeniable. Aside from the obvious venue development, the bass fishing public bought bigger and better cars, to travel longer and further to the latest hot-spot. They emulated their American counterparts and spurred boating companies to new heights, helping develop specialised bass fishing boats hitherto unseen in this part of the world. Clubs proliferated and an active membership ushered in an age of “Taking a Kid Fishing”... the new generation was born.

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Much of this sport fishery had at its roots the thousands of farm dams scattered on privately owned commercial farms throughout the country - some 4500 of them, often boasting more than one dam. While some of these dams featured lodges, or at the least boat launching facilities, and operated on a semi-commercial basis providing prime waters to sport fishermen, many were incidental breeding grounds for bass as they slowly spread around the country following their introduction in 1932 (from stock brought to South Africa from America in 1928) of pure strain Largemouth Black bass or the Northern strain bass (Micropterus salmoides), as it is known. An aggressive fish, the Northern bass found African conditions to its liking and proliferated, growing to notable sizes for that species. This spawned the active bass fishing fraternity which would, over time, adopt the American based BASS (Bass Anglers Sportsman’s Society) code, ethics and guidelines. Paramount in this ethos was the practice of catch and release, ensuring a stable and healthy bass population to sustain the sport.

The 1980s saw the importation and introduction of the Florida subspecies, M. salmoides floridianus, a much faster growing bass which attained considerably greater weights. These fish quickly hybridized with the earlier introduced Black bass, and over time dominated the gene pool as the pure strain Black bass became a distant memory. An active Zimbabwe BASS Federation (allied to the USA association) buoyed by an enthusiastic membership took the sport to new levels, and various translocation programs saw bass introduced and managed in most dams across Zimbabwe.

In the twilight of the 1990s things began to change, and by 2000 nearly seven decades of dedicated fisheries work began collapsing. The dawn of Zimbabwe’s land re-distribution exercise had begun, and would ultimately see the mismanagement, or lack of any management of many of these dams, with often militant new owners turning away any form of input, assistance or advice, let alone participation of those who had created this fishery. Along with this, much of Zimbabwe’s tourism industry collapsed and with it went what many believed was a great potential revenue-earner in attracting foreign bass anglers to a well managed and prolific bass fishery.

Jump ahead 15 years and Zimbabwe’s bass fishing landscape is very different, and in many cases resembles a moonscape rather than anything resembling the once potentially world-record-producing bass fishery it was. As might be expected, fish provided much needed protein to the new settlers, and the advantages of sport fishing seemed lost on the often cash-strapped new farmers. While bass do not fall easily to nets, a brigade of rod and line subsistence fishermen, along with dubious spear fishing activities (made possible by the chaotic free-for-all on the farms) decimated the bass fishery in all but a few farm dams. Food chains in many of these dams suffered too, as the once significant run-off of agricultural fertilizers and nutrients from previously vibrant commercial farms, dwindled and robbed dams of important sustenance.

However, over the last few years, bass anglers have noticed declines in catches from waters not necessarily plagued by the mismanagement outlined above. Something else was at play, and while mis-management is a factor, the subject needed some clarification which came during a fortuitous meeting with Gerry Jooste, one of Zimbabwe’s top bass anglers who for a time fished throughout the United States as a professional bass angler, and is featured on the cover of this issue... still doing what he loves.

While bass are one of those anomalies in African waters, being introduced and considered “exotic” and even “invasive”, many of us - this magazine included - have much to thank this iconic sport fish for. Work is underway to rehabilitate our bass fishery, and we do all have a role to play - see below for more - with the hope that bass fishing will once again become the dynamo it once was.

Over the years, Zimbabwe has produced examples of strangely pigmented fish, and while we have published pictures of “albino” tigerfish and bream, this phenomenon is not uncommon in bass, similar to the tigerfish shown here, caught by Mike Querl around Deka on the Zambezi in mid-September 2014. Referred to Dr. Neil Deacon for comment, he says “This is just a pigmentation anomaly, and this blotching with black and orange is sometimes seen in carps and tilapias. Other anomalies also crop up in tigerfish, as I have seen a specimen with no orange on fins from Kariba and heard of a fish that was entirely black. This blotchy phenomenon is similar to albinism in as far as it changes appearance, however albinism is total absence of pigment. A curiosity rather than anything of scientific significance when there is single incidence and so really just an obvious example of nature’s continual testing of alternative genotypes. In this case not detrimental as this particular tigerfish seems to have grown to a reasonable size (maturity) and I suppose might have evolutionary significance if there was measurable incidence in the population.”

He kicked out hard, and in that same instant he saw the crocodile as it launched itself at him and gripped his arm in its massive jaws! Even in the terror of the moment, Alistair realised that the tip of the crocodile’s jaw was about a metre from its eyes. The observation was only theoretical, for in the second Alistair felt himself being spun around as the fearsome reptile tried to tear his arm out of its socket. He felt the solid tail twisting around his legs as the crocodile looked him straight in the face. With his good arm, Alistair tried to jam a thumb into its eye but couldn’t reach. The crocodile began to gain control and was pulling him into shallower water. Alistair realised that this would mean that his enemy would be able to use the leverage of the bottom and pull him under the water to drown. In cold-blooded desperation he forced his good arm down the reptile’s throat and curled his thumb and fingers around the flap that seals off the crocodile’s lungs when it goes under water. This sent the beast into a frenzy, but made it release Alistair’s badly mutilated arm and allowed him to escape and clamber up the steep bank. He was attacked again as he scrambled up the exposed roots and out of the river, but the reptile’s strikes fell short and Alistair collapsed against a fallen tree.

Early in 2010, a chance discovery of pure Northerns in a small, protected and easily fished dam close to Harare set the ball in motion. Having confirmed the genetics through well known ichthyologist - Neil Deacon - Northerns were moved to various breeding ponds. They were paired with prime condition Floridas of trophy size (ensuring good genetics) and bred. This first broodstock of the Northerns and Florida strain would be known as the “F1" Bass, and was destined to be stocked alongside other bass relocations. While some fingerlings were kept and grown out to about seven inches over a 4-5 month period, rising costs were a factor and most were stocked as fingerlings. Over the 2012/2013 season, some 4 000 F1 fingerlings were stocked into various dams. This coupled with the translocation of nearly 3 000 adult - and often trophy fish close to, or over 10 pounds - between 2011 and late 2014, will hopefully re-establish what many Bassmasters feel constitute a viable fishery.

But the work is far from over. Given that the evolution of hard-to-catch Florida bass occurred in the first place, it is important to maintain a level of F1 stocking in years to come. “This” Gerry says “is an expensive exercise requiring a large volunteer base to do the work. It is hard on equipment, and often dangerous as many of the targeted dams are not easily accessible any longer. It has been amazing how bass fishermen have rallied to the cause, and the guys in Zimbabwe’s Midlands have worked miracles there, resuscitating some prime waters, while one or two dams close to Harare are showing signs of returning to their former glory.” Funding of an ongoing, sustained strategy will be essential as no one really knows how long it takes to lose the aggressive genes and F1 breeding and stocking will likely be the long-term key.

At the end of the day though, these efforts will require the participation of all anglers who enjoy bass fishing. Catch and release of bass is a must while the fishery is re-established. The shooting of bass by sprearos is generally considered unsporting, as the bass’ inquisitive and aggressive nature makes it easy prey and no real sport at all. In recent years, some new farmers have approached the Bassmaster fraternity to assist in ridding even them of a deep-freeze brigade of commercial spear fishermen (not sportsman at all) exploiting the lack of control on some dams.

Zimbabwe’s bass fishery can once again be considered in its infancy, and time will tell if it will ever fully recover. If you are able to assist in cash or kind, are able to provide breeding ponds or a safe haven for fish awaiting translocation, or get involved in moving fish, you may be able to contribute to the process of re-establishing one of Africa’s best bass fisheries. Email the writer for further information - fishunt@zol.co.zw or Gerry on g.jooste@hotmail.com.

These albino or “melanistic” bass exhibit a golden colour. What is interesting here, is the size these fish have attained too, as one assumes their colouring would be quite a disadvantage in a “dog eat dog” world... or bass eat bass as the case is. The first is an almost eight pounder caught by Rick Crook at Lake Manyame, Darwendale (and released), while the other two pictures show a fish which came out of Susugi caught by Barry Launder weighing around five pounds. Note its coloration compared to the normal pigmented bass. This fish was also released and one wonders if this genetic trait will be passed along.

Through the mid 1990s, Zimbabwe was poised to become one of the world’s bass fishing hotspots. A long-standing, vibrant and successful bass fishery established in the 1930s was yielding unparalleled fishing on the African continent, and the shear space and volume of water given over to sport fishing saw lightly utilised resources where overcrowding was impossible. It was not uncommon to be alone on some prime bass water, tucked away in the wilderness where one often fished in the company of prolific wildlife, even elephants. As outlined in this issue’s editorial, that has changed and while mismanagement of this bass fishing resource is at the root of its decline, serious and knowledgeable bass anglers believe something more is at play.

At a chance encounter with Zimbabwe’s one-time professional bass angler, Gerry Jooste during a bass tournament at Casa Msika on the banks of Chicamba dam in Mozambique, we lamented the passing of the days of old where big, hungry and aggressive fish dominated almost every water body. In spite of the obvious management issues, Gerry had another theory, and one which he - along with other like-minded bassers - had been working tirelessly to fix. Yes, mismanagement and the lack of will on the part of the new farmers had played a role, and yes, achieving anything close to the fishery of the 1990s was something of a pipe dream in the current environment. But, there was still enough water to warrant a management strategy and the Bassmasters still had all the tools to continue managing what was left. However, this in Gerry’s opinion was not going to be enough, and the decline of catchable fish on waters where he, and others, knew big bass resided was causing concern.

What Gerry, and others believed, is that the hybridized and mostly Florida strain bass remaining were less aggressive and had even become “wise”, learning to avoid lures and the like. Allied to this, all the aggressive fish once present had been caught (or speared) and killed. They theorized that the Northern strain had inherently been a more aggressive fish, and with their waning genes over the years, many dams were left with un-chatchable Florida strain bass. Gerry also observed another phenomenon which to this day, he has no clear answer for. In many dams, there seemed to be a size gap between about two and six pounds. There were many small fish, the big ones were still there, but the mid-range bass once common had disappeared, with only an occasional three to four pound bass being caught. It is possible that due to the more aggressive nature of smaller fish, most were caught or speared and were not recruited to adulthood, with a few “lucky” fish making it to trophy size, or that uncontrolled netting with fine-gauge nets decimated the bass’ food source and nature took its toll.

Some prime bass from Letsibogo Dam in Botswana taken by Gerry in recent times.

Sometime in the mid-2000s, while Zimbabwe’s bass fishery was in free-fall, South African bassers embarked on a comprehensive plan to stock and re-stock their dams, after which (by about 2010) they were producing outstanding catches. This Gerry believes was due, in the main, to that re-stocking process. Prompted by this a two pronged strategy was formulated aimed at halting Zimbabwe’s decline and hopefully turning it around again. That re-stocking was required was unquestionable. BASS Zimbabwe still had all the translocation tanks (which were refurbished) and as many of their tournament and league venues still had good bass, it was decided to translocate fish where possible from dam to dam. This “mixing up of the genetics” is a proven management tool even in a sustained fishery, and fishermen throughout the country were keen to get involved. But this on its own, many believed, would not be sufficient to create a top-notch fishery and the second facet would involve securing, breeding and stocking pure strain Northern Black bass - a costly and time consuming proposition, but necessary to re-establish aggressive bass genes.

An interesting spin-off to many of the translocation exercises has been the movement of other indigenous fish along with the bass, especially bream. Says Gerry “I have noticed over the years, that the once prolific niloticus bream are not as dominant as they once were.” Nillies are not indigenous to Zimbabwe and displaced our local species, and at one time were about the only bream one would catch. Because of their spiny fins, they are not easily swallowed by bass and generally not an ideal fodder fish. However, their boom following their introduction seems to have settled giving way to the re-emergence of species like Rendalli or Pinkies (Tilapia rendalli), Macs (Oreochromis macrichir) and Mozzies (Oreochromis mossambicus) - all much sought-after bream by anglers. Many Nembwe or robbies (Serranachromis robustus) have been moved too, while Gerry was careful to exclude Niloticus. Another interesting observation made by Gerry, was the bass’ liking of Red-eyed labeo (Labeo cylindricus) especially in prime dams like Chicamba in Mozambique and Letsibogo Dam close to Selebe Phikwe, which Gerry fishes in eastern Botswana. Accidental captures of labeo while netting fry were made, and these relocated along with the other indigenous species. Red-eyed labeo are a very common and hardy species throughout Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique and South Africa, and obviously a good fodder fish for bass.

*These fish were the original Northern strain, a smaller, slower growing fish first introduced in 1932. The introduction of the faster growing Florida strain in 1981, and its cross breeding with the original strain, can account for the larger record fish from the late eighties onward.

Golden Bass

An almost eight pounder caught by Rick Crook at Lake Manyame.	Barry Launder's five pounder out of Susugi.	Gerry Jooste showing a Golden Bass.

Some prime bass from Letsibogo Dam in Botswana taken by Gerry in recent times.

Relocating fish is an arduous, time consuming and expensive process, funded mostly by enthusiastic volunteers under often trying conditions. Many is the time this process will start before the sun rises and end once it has set.

The seed of the future... a robust stocky F1 Bass it is hoped will re-create the Zimbabwean bass fishery.

(Left) 1954 Record - Pictured is Mr. Jim Ewing, formerly of Fort Victoria (Masvingo) with the first

recorded bass record for Zimbabwe, and what would probably have been the biggest in Africa at that time. The pictures sent in by his daughter and published in this magazine in 2002 complements a picture on file which was originally published in the Fishing and Outdoor Magazine (published from Gweru in the 1950s) of December 1953 (Vol.1 No.3). The caption to that original picture reads “Mr. J.R. Ewing, chairman of the Fort Victoria and District Angling Society, with his record Black Bass which weighed 8lbs 5oz (Length 24½”, Girth 19½”), for which he was awarded the Ross Elliot Trophy.” Jim Ewing’s fish came from a dam we know today as Mushandike, built on the Umshandige river in 1938.

(Above Right) Maxwell Mashandure’s record fish measuring 27½" x 24½" and reported to have weighed 9kg on the day caught though only verified on an assized scale a day later, giving a final weight that would be the one accepted for record purposes. At 18lbs04oz, this bass ranks in the top 20 of the world. Lake Manyame (Darwendale) produced two All-Africa records in its reign (the other weighing 7,295kg caught in 1998), but sadly due to pollution - un-treated sewage coming from Lake Chivero up-stream - and uncontrolled netting, the dam has been one of the casualties of modern-day Zimbabwe.

The video above was taken just before the level was dropped, while the map below clearly shows the high water level and the present status of the dam.

Oddities of Nature

Occasionally, nature throws up an interesting specimen for us all to marvel at. While not common, albino or strange pigmented fish are not as rare as one thinks. This tigerfish caught by Mike Querl around Deka on the Zambezi in mid-September 2014 is a prime example. Referred to Dr. Neil Deacon for comment, he says “This is just a pigmentation anomaly, and this blotching with black and orange is sometimes seen in carps and tilapias. Other anomalies also crop up in tigerfish, as I have seen a specimen with no orange on fins from Kariba and heard of a fish that was entirely black.”

We published the pictures of the “silver” tigerfish back in 2006, which was caught by Mike Stone in Kariba. Weighing around 5kg, it came from a shoal of similar sized fish, all with natural coloration. Neil continues “This blotchy phenomenon is similar to albinism in as far as it changes appearance, however albinism is total absence of pigment (like the 2006 fish). A curiosity rather than anything of scientific significance when there is single incidence and so really just an obvious example of nature’s continual testing of alternative genotypes. In this case not detrimental as this individual seems to have grown to a reasonable size (maturity) and I suppose might have evolutionary significance if there was measurable incidence in the population.”