Donald C. Jackson

Following Hurricane Katrina in 2005, hypoxia-induced fish kills occurred throughout the Pascagoula River Basin in southeast Mississippi. We evaluated the effect of stocking adult Florida largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides floridanus; 200-356 mm total length) into Pascagoula River floodplain lakes to enhance fisheries recovery. We stocked 37 fish/ha into five randomly-chosen lakes in December 2006, whereas five additional lakes were left unstocked to serve as a control. Electrofishing catch per unit effort (CPUE: fish/h) and length-frequency distributions of largemouth bass and...

Atlantic tarpon Megalops atlanticus is an important recreational fisheries resource in the 6 brackish water lagoons located in Puerto Rico's Humacao Natural Reserve. The lagoons, which formed on the reserve after Hurricane David and Tropical Storm Frederick flooded the area in August 1979, are arranged in series and connect to the sea during periods of substantial precipitation. Subsequently, they reflect environmental gradients from essentially marine to low-salinity brackish water conditions. From March 2000 to April 2001, experimental mesh gill nets (N = 228) were utilized to conduct...

Shadow bass (Ambloplites ariommus) stocks were characterized in the Yockanookany and upper Pearl Rivers (1994-1996) to determine if this relatively uncommon fish could be used to evaluate streams for inclusion in the Mississippi Natural and Scenic Waterways System. Habitat influences (e.g., negative effects of channelization) on shadow bass were best reflected in stock characteristics that need considerable data and laboratory work (i.e., age and growth studies, condition factor analysis). Such studies focusing on shadow bass are incompatible with programs requiring rapid assessments of...

Three hoop net configurations were fished simultaneously to compare catch efficacy for bigmouth buffalo (Ictiobus cyprinellus) and smallmouth buffalo (/. bubalus) in 3 tributaries of the Yazoo River, Mississippi. Nets were small standard (4.3 m long with 1.1-m diameter hoops and 3.8-cm bar mesh), small commercial (4.3 m long with 1.1-m diameter hoops and 7.6-cm bar mesh), and large commercial (5.0 m long with 1.5-m diameter hoops and 7.6-cm bar mesh) hoop nets. Large commercial nets are the principal gear of commercial, artisanal, and subsistence fishers exploiting the resource. Small...

Channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) stock characteristics of a small floodplain river were compared from samples collected in 1994-1996 from 3 different hoop configurations (large hoop net (LH): 4.3 long with 7 1.07-m diameter hoops and 3.81-cm bar mesh netting; small hoop net (SH): 1.3 m long with 4 0.51-m diameter hoops and 3.81-cm bar mesh netting; and small hoop net (SM): 1.3 m long with 4 .0.51-m diameter hoops and 2.54-cm bar mesh netting). Channel catfish were fully-recruited at 35cm total length (TL) in LH and SH configurations and 30 cm TL in the SM configuration. The SM...

We conducted a study of channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) movements in the Yockanookany River, Mississippi, a river subjected to a long-reach decoupling of the river channel from its respective floodplain. We collected 40 channel catfish and surgically implanted radio-transmitters. Fish were tracked during 2 periods—March-June 1994 and November 1994-June 1995. Most fish moved ≤5 km. During elevated flows, radio-tagged fish in the river moved to or remained in the river section coupled with the floodplain. Four fish moved from the river channel into an oxbow lake when it was coupled...

Small watershed impoundments provide the principal recreational fishing opportunities within national forests in Mississippi. Relative abundance and stock structure of bluegiii (Lepomis macrochirus) and largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) were assessed by electrofishing 18 national forest impoundments during spring 1990, autumn 1990, and spring 1991. There were no significant yearto- year or seasonal differences in catch per unit effort (CPUE) or proportional stock density (PSD) for either species. Mean CPUE for stock-size largemouth bass (total length ≥ 200 mm) ranged from 8.2 to 9.7...

Principal fisheries in riverine sections of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway below Aberdeen and Columbus dams are associated with tailwaters and bendways (original Tombigbee River channels cut off by the construction of navigation channels). Navigation channels contributed little to the fisheries. Approximately 80% of the anglers interviewed originated their trip from within the county where the respective dam was located. Blue catfish (lctalurus furcatus) dominated the harvest from the Aberdeen system while white crappie (Pomoxis annularis) dominated the harvest from the Columbus system....

A 5-month series of biweekly metazoan zooplankton samples from vegetated and unvegetated littoral areas and their respective adjacent limnetic areas was collected from Lake Fayetteville, Arkansas. No significant differences (P ≤ 0.05) in densities of Rotatoria and Cladocera were detected among any of the sample areas. However, densities of Copepoda in the vegetated littoral area were significantly less than those associated with the unvegetated littoral area. Predation by littoral-dwelling planktivorous fishes on copepods is suggested. This study further suggests that the trophic...

Few significant differences could be detected between a high flow year and a low flow year with respect to catch, effort, catch per unit effort, or the functional composition of the multi-species tailwater fishery below Jordan Dam on the Coosa River, Alabama. Additionally, no significant or consistent correlations were evident between mean daily discharge and daily catch during the 2 surveys. Correlations between daily effort and daily catch per unit effort with mean daily flow were few, inconsistent, and restricted to winter and late summer months when fishing effort was minimal. Angler...