Nonnative Smallmouth Bass Threaten Fabled Miramichi River Atlantic Salmon
“The bass were believed to have been illegally introduced to Miramichi Lake around 2008. They were held by a barrier before some escaped through Lake Brook and reached the Southwest Miramichi River in 2019.”
Nonnative and highly invasive smallmouth bass pose a real and immediate threat to the most famous Atlantic salmon in North America, those of the Miramichi River. The longer we delay attempting to get rid of them via chemical reclamation, the less likely we will ever be able to do so. The time to act is now…
NFC does not take chemical reclamation lightly. We understand that there is resistance to using chemicals to remove fish, and in some ways we understand why people are concerned. But to be fair, no other methods available today have proven effective, and no action means the loss of native fish.
“Previous attempts to contain and remove the smallmouths through angling and electrofishing weren’t effective. Recreational fishing for salmon and other native species also forms the backbone of the local economy.”
Like many things done under the guise of saving Atlantic salmon, what we learn on the Miramichi River could be used to help save critically endangered Atlantic salmon in Maine where both smallmouth and largemouth bass have been introduced.
The same holds true for places where nonnative bass have been introduced on top of wild native brook trout. This includes the Rapid River, arguably the finest wild native brook trout river in the United States. And if the trend continues, we will likely be dealing with bass over native cutthroat out west.
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Two juvenile wild native brook trout pulled from the belly of a nonnative smallmouth from Downeast Maine could have just as easily been critically endangered Atlantic salmon. (Downeast Salmon Federation)