Persistence of Florida largemouth bass alleles in a northern Arkansas population of largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides Lacèpéde |
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| Authors: | R L Johnson T Fulton |
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| Institution: | Department of Biology, Arkansas State University, State University, Arkansas, USA |
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| Abstract: | Abstract– Lake Ashbaugh, located in northeast Arkansas, was constructed in 1981, and initially stocked with Florida largemouth bass followed by supplemental stockings of northern largemouth bass. Allele frequencies of three discriminant allozyme loci (sAAT-B, sIDH-B, sMDH-B) between Florida and northern largemouth bass were determined for 414 largemouth bass collected between 1994 and 1996. Fx bass dominated our sample, with 62.3% possessing Florida largemouth bass alleles. A high incidence of Hardy-Weinberg disequilibrium was observed, indicative of genetic change within the population. No significant differences were identified for frequency of age classes, relative weight, and length at age between the northern, F1 and Fx phenotypes. Despite being located north of what is generally considered suitable for stocking Florida largemouth bass, it was demonstrated that temperature is not selective at present against bass possessing Florida largemouth bass alleles. However, caution should prevail when introducing non-native stock into native gene complexes, as introduced genes persist through many generations. |
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| Keywords: | largemouth bass allele population |
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