Fish Facts Can Improve Your Florida Bass Fishing

Bass fishing is fun. It allows us the opportunities to enjoy the great outdoors, to spend time shooting the breeze with fellow anglers, and to provide a tasty dinner. Though we may focus on our techniques when Florida bass fishing, familiarizing ourselves with the bass itself can certainly help to increase our catch.

Different Groups

Basses are grouped in the phylum Chordata, the subphylum Vertebrata, the class Osteichthyes, and the order Perciformes. All basses, including those caught through Florida bass fishing belong to either the family of sea basses (Serranidae), or the family of black basses and sunfishes (Centrachidae). All types of basses, including those enjoyed through Florida bass fishing are carnivorous. While the majority live in saltwater, many types reside in freshwater (sunfish).

Sea basses are a vital family of fishes that resemble the perch. The former are huge and varied, with somewhat compacted bodies. They live in warm and mild seas around in world, including regions where Florida bass fishing transpires, and are often enjoyed as food and game fishes.

The black or common sea bass is located along the Atlantic coast, including where anglers engage in Florida bass fishing. This slothful fish swims along the seafloor and averages a weight of 6 lbs. (2.7 kilograms) and a length of 18in. (45 cm).

White basses are also classified with the sea basses, including the perch; and the rockfish or striped bass. Both of these varieties live in both fresh and salty waters from areas where Florida bass fishing is enjoyed, to Canada. On the other hand, another variety of white bass swims in the Great Lakes and Mississippi valley. Located in the same region, the yellow bass also resembles the types of white basses. In addition, the white sea bass located in the North Pacific region (croaker) is actually a member of the Sciaenidae family.

Furthermore, various fishes are classified as Pacific sea basses, such as the 2-ft. (60-cm) kelp bass; sand basses, and the Pacific jewish—a thick bottom fish that can weigh about 600 lbs. (270 kg) and be 7 ft. (2.1 m) in length.

Other exotic fishes are also classified as basses. In the Southern Hemisphere’s cold, deep waters, we can also find the Patagonian toothfish, commonly known as the “Chilean sea bass.” The groupers are also a significant genus of huge tropical sea basses. Lastly, the robalo, snook, and tripletail resemble the sea basses and reside in tropical American saltwaters.

When enjoying Florida bass fishing, knowledge of various types of basses may seem irrelevant. However, this knowledge can improve our fishing techniques and then allow us to recognize the fruits (fishes, actually) of our labor.