01-05-2023, 01:32 PM
There was a huge dieoff of white bass between ice out and the spawn this last year. White bass of all sizes were found floating in many parts of the lake. Samples of the dead whities were taken by DWR biologists but nothing definitive was ever found to be the cause of the mass dieoff.
They didn't all die (obviously) but the toll was enough to greatly affect their numbers. They did not show up in the hordes they usually do at spawning time and very few were caught through the summer...usually only one or two per trip instead of the many that usually are available for those who seek them. White bass numbers have been low for the past three or four years after a similar dieoff a few years ago. That is LOW compared to the vast schools that many of us are used to finding. But they are prolific and they will come back. Only takes a few spawners in a good spawning year to rebuild the population. They are prolific.
They didn't all die (obviously) but the toll was enough to greatly affect their numbers. They did not show up in the hordes they usually do at spawning time and very few were caught through the summer...usually only one or two per trip instead of the many that usually are available for those who seek them. White bass numbers have been low for the past three or four years after a similar dieoff a few years ago. That is LOW compared to the vast schools that many of us are used to finding. But they are prolific and they will come back. Only takes a few spawners in a good spawning year to rebuild the population. They are prolific.