Black bass facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Micropterus |
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| Smallmouth bass (M. dolomieu) | |
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Micropterus
Lacepede, 1802
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Black bass are a type of fresh water fish. They live in a big area of North America, east of the Rocky Mountains. You can find them from Canada all the way to northeastern Mexico. Some kinds, like the Largemouth and Smallmouth bass, have been moved to many other parts of the world.
People love to catch black bass for sport. Bass fishing is a very popular hobby. These fish are known for being strong fighters when caught. They also taste good!
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What Do Black Bass Look Like?
There are different kinds of black bass. Here are some of the most common ones:
Largemouth Bass
The Largemouth bass usually has greenish to brownish sides. It has a dark line that runs from its head to its tail. This fish is the biggest member of the sunfish family. Its upper jaw goes back past its eye.
Smallmouth Bass
The Smallmouth bass is often brown with red eyes. It has dark brown stripes that go up and down, not a line along its side. Its upper jaw reaches only to the middle of its eye. People sometimes call it the "bronzeback" or "brownie."
Spotted Bass
The Spotted bass looks a lot like the largemouth bass in color. However, it has a smaller mouth. Its upper jaw only reaches the front of its eye. It is also known as the Kentucky bass.
Where Do Black Bass Live?
Black bass live in both moving water, like rivers, and still water, like lakes. They can live where there are water plants or not. They need food and places to hide.
These fish can live in many different kinds of water. They like water temperatures from 20 to 30°C (68 to 86°F). You often find them in water less than 20 feet deep. Smallmouth bass usually prefer clear water. They also tend to live in deeper water than largemouth bass.
What Do Black Bass Eat?
What a bass eats changes as it grows bigger.
- Young bass eat tiny animals that you can only see with a microscope.
- Smaller bass, called fingerlings, eat insects and small fish.
- Adult bass will eat almost anything they can find! This includes fish, crabs, frogs, salamanders, small snakes, mice, turtles, and even birds.
Female bass tend to live longer than males. They also grow much bigger. By the time they are five years old, female bass can weigh twice as much as males. The oldest bass found in Florida was 16 years old.
Why Are Black Bass Popular for Fishing?
The largemouth bass is a very popular fresh water game fish. Many people love to catch them because they are very aggressive. They will strike a bait with a lot of force! You can catch them using almost any type of fishing bait.
Because they are so popular, many fishermen practice "catch and release." This means they let the fish go after catching it. This helps keep the fish populations healthy.
A very large bass was caught in Montgomery Lake, Georgia (U.S. state) in 1932. It weighed 22 pounds, 4 ounces!
How Do Black Bass Affect the Economy?
Sport fishing for black bass, especially largemouth and smallmouth bass, has become very popular. This sport brings a lot of money into local economies. For example, in Texas, fishermen spent billions of dollars on fishing gear, licenses, and trips in 1996. This created many jobs and brought in a lot of tax money for the state.
Some talented fishermen have even turned bass fishing into a job. They become professionals and compete in tournaments. Kevin VanDam is one of the top professional bass fishermen. He has earned millions of dollars from the sport.
Images for kids
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Smallmouth bass (M. dolomieu)
See also
In Spanish: Micropterus para niños
