Utility of Synthetic Structures for Concentrating Adult Northern Pike and Largemouth Bass

Abstract

Five synthetic structure designs were compared to determine their relative value as management tools to improve sport fishing in two 25-ha warmwater impoundments on the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, near Denver, Colorado. Sonic telemetry and systematic angling were used to evaluate attraction of adult northern pike Esox lucius and largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides to artificial structures popularized by Arizona Game and Fish, Anglers United, and the Bureau of Land Management in Saguaro Lake, Arizona. These included “bass bungalows,” “crappie condos,” “magic mushrooms,” “Fish'n Trees,” and a mixture of structure types. Structures containing Fish'n Trees consistently attracted adult largemouth bass as measured by sonic telemetry and systematic angling. Only 40% of the synthetic structures contained Fish'n Trees, yet they accounted for two-thirds of the largemouth bass caught or located with telemetry. Northern pike were not attracted to the artificial structures in either lake according to either monitoring method. Growth of aquatic macrophytes appeared to influence use of artificial structures. In the absence of lush macrophyte beds, synthetic structures can effectively concentrate adult largemouth bass in previously underutilized regions of a lake during summer. Their value as a management tool will be most apparent in warmwater impoundments with little physical structure, poor macrophyte growth, and limited angler access to existing structural features.