The Fish and Boat Commission is inviting anglers and others with an interest in the management of smallmouth bass in the Susquehanna River to a free public meeting beginning at 1 p.m. January 21 at agency’s headquarters, 1601 Elmerton Avenue in Harrisburg.

The symposium will touch upon subjects such as fish disease, fish population monitoring results, trends in consumptive water use and water quality trends.

In addition to presentations from PFBC fisheries biologists, speakers will include representatives from the Department of Environmental Protection, the Susquehanna River Basin Commission and the United States Geological Survey. A question and answer session will follow the formal presentations.

Smallmouth bass have long been the most prized gamefish in the Susquehanna River and the waterway is widely regarded as one of the top – if not the best – riverine smallmouth fisheries in the nation. Public interest in issues related to smallmouth bass management in the river was heightened in the summer of 2005 when biologists and anglers noted unusual numbers of distressed or dead juvenile smallmouth in various locations throughout the Susquehanna watershed.

The PFBC concluded the affected fish were suffering from Columnaris disease, an infection related to a common soil and water bacteria Flavobacterium columnare (columnaris). Columnaris disease is considered a secondary infection brought on by environmental or nutritional factors that stress fish, weakening their ability to cope with the bacterial agent.

Since the announcement that it had pinpointed the type of fish disease affecting young smallmouth, the PFBC has been working with partner agencies like DEP, USGS and SRBC to look at factors such as river flow, weather trends and general water quality issues that, combined, may have contributed to the higher-than-usual occurrence of Columnaris in juvenile smallmouth. The Commission also has compiled additional data related to young-of-the-year smallmouth abundance and long-term trends for adult populations. These subjects will be the focal points of the public meeting.

Because of an expected high interest, those who desire to attend the event are being asked to pre-register online at the PFBC’s website or by calling 717-705-7810.

1/6/2006