You cannot run a controlled experiment in an uncontrolled environment. Meaning, yes they stock some fingerlings from 13lb+ fish. But, in order to increase the overall size of the gene pool, you have to control the breeding of every fish in the lake. Not every fingerling from trophy size parents will be trophy size fish. You decrease that number significantly when a non trophy size fish is allowed to breed with a trophy size fish. TP&W has already estimated that only 1-3% of the fingerlings they stock each year survive to adults. I'm shocked that it would be this low but that is based on their research. So, the program has brought a lot of notoriety to the State of Texas and I believe has had some benefit in more catch and release. But, IMO, it has done very little if any to advance the overall gene pool of trophy 13lb+ fish in any given body of water in Texas. Introduction of Hydrilla has done more for producing 13lb+ fish then TP&W will ever do.

There was a 13.13 Florida/Native cross caught in Falcon in 2008 that was aged at eight (8) years old by TPWD..

So I don't think they're breaking any records.. Or remaking the mold..

If I caught a 13lb bass it would be pretty special to me at least.....

Another piece of (anecdotal) evidence that the genetic aspect of big fish is way overblown.

It could be argued that this selectively bred fish (when confirmed by genetic testing) is not more special than any of the 565 13-plus-pound non-selectively bred bass submitted to the SL program. In the press release it said, "Can we selectively breed these fish to make them grow bigger and faster?�� The fish from Marine Creek didn't grow faster than a regular Florida bass. And, it remains to be seen whether it will grow bigger than a regular Florida bass.

What's special about this fish is that it is the first data point that can help answer the question in the press release. As more data comes in it should be possible to see if the selectively bred fish do/do not get bigger on average and/or grow faster on average.

Ok, I'll give it that. But wasn't the non-SAL (12+) caught at Naconchie a couple years ago the first data point? There was also a 14.12 caught there last summer, though outside the SAL acceptance window.

Here's Naconchie's recent stocking history of SAL bass.

Bass, ShareLunker largemouth 2012 173 Adult
Bass, ShareLunker largemouth 2011 2,020 Fingerling
Bass, ShareLunker largemouth 2009 95,389 Fingerling
Bass, ShareLunker largemouth 2009 173 Adult

The Naconichie fish was not a pure Florida.. Its mother was caught out of Falcon.. It was a cross..

In regards to SL fish growing faster than pure Floridas.. PAW allegedly started a growth rate test on these two different fish, under exact same conditions for both fish, about five years ago.. The results of which have never been shared with the public.. Which I was promised a long time ago..

I ain't holding my breath..

Thanks, James. I guess the hoopla at the time was over her being a SAL offspring, but not a pure Florida SAL offspring.

It's really about timing of stockings. You can stock all the amazing genetically superior fish you want but if the lake is low and void of cover, you're feeding the white bass and crappie.

Must have never been on Marine Creek. The bottom of the lake is a vast wasteland with no cover, since they killed the hydrilla 20 years ago.

True that. The baitfish population is also fairly poor for Marine Creek. If I'm not mistaken, the size and water quality make it difficult for forage species such as shad to be abundant. Plenty of sunfish but no shad and no cover isn't a great recipe for growing monster bass. There are some good ones in Marine Creek but I view them mostly as anomalies. just my 2 cents.

The question has never been if the program works- it's that it has been misused and people have been lied to about their intent- did you forget about the large political donator getting all those fingerling and then charging over 1000 a day to fish or what they did to the man in Athens who donated his lunker and then he returned all the things they had given him- it's the people not the program and the list is very long and I only mentioned a few of happenings all in the name of the program

If you're gonna make accusations, please have the manhood to name names. I'd like to know the "political contributor" you speak of is. I have an idea you're talking about La Perlia in South Texas. If so, that's far from the accurate story.

But... a fish that size on that lake has plenty to eat, like all the 12-14" bass that seem to have been the only thing I could get in the boat.

On a side note, there were 9s and 10s being caught out of there 3 or 4 years ago, it's good to see that some of that class has made it to the teens. A buddy of mine caught a 9 there in 2012 that was about as pretty a fish as you could imagine, looked like a Fork fish from the 90s.

1 over 13 doesn't make it the next fork. There have been plenty of random 13's caught from small lakes and ponds all over the state.