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The Nonindigenous Occurrences section of the NAS species profiles has a new structure. The section is now dynamically updated from the NAS database to ensure that it contains the most current and accurate information. Occurrences are summarized in Table 1, alphabetically by state, with years of earliest and most recent observations, and the tally and names of drainages where the species was observed. The table contains hyperlinks to collections tables of specimens based on the states, years, and drainages selected. References to specimens that were not obtained through sighting reports and personal communications are found through the hyperlink in the Table 1 caption or through the individual specimens linked in the collections tables.




Morone mississippiensis
Morone mississippiensis
(Yellow Bass)
Fishes
Native Transplant

Copyright Info
Morone mississippiensis Jordan and Eigenmann in Eigenmann, 1887

Common name: Yellow Bass

Taxonomy: available through www.itis.govITIS logo

Identification: Pflieger (1975); Becker (1983); Page and Burr (1991); Etnier and Starnes (1993).

Size: 46 cm.

Native Range: Lake Michigan and Mississippi River basins from Wisconsin and Minnesota south to Gulf; east to western Indiana and eastern Tennessee, and west to western Iowa and eastern Oklahoma. On Gulf Slope in lower Mobile Bay drainage, Alabama, and from Pearl River drainage, Louisiana, to Galveston Bay drainage, Texas (Page and Burr 1991).

Native range data for this species provided in part by NatureServe NS logo
Hydrologic Unit Codes (HUCs) Explained
Interactive maps: Point Distribution Maps

Nonindigenous Occurrences:

Table 1. States with nonindigenous occurrences, the earliest and latest observations in each state, and the tally and names of HUCs with observations†. Names and dates are hyperlinked to their relevant specimen records. The list of references for all nonindigenous occurrences of Morone mississippiensis are found here.

StateFirst ObservedLast ObservedTotal HUCs with observations†HUCs with observations†
AL198019985Black Warrior-Tombigbee; Cahaba; Locust; Lower Coosa; Upper Black Warrior
AZ192920046Canyon Diablo; Lower Colorado Region; Lower Salt; Middle Gila; Upper Gila-San Carlos Reservoir; Upper Salt
AR201820181Dardanelle Reservoir
GA199720133Etowah; Oostanaula; Upper Coosa
IL201620161Lake Michigan
IN201720234Lake Michigan; Little Calumet-Galien; Lower East Fork White; Upper White
IA198020246Big Papillion-Mosquito; Floyd; Little Sioux; Nodaway; Thompson; Upper Grand
KS188519982Independence-Sugar; Lower Missouri-Blackwater
KY198619864Lower Kentucky; Lower Ohio-Little Pigeon; Salt; Tradewater
MN202320231Blue Earth
MS199119912Upper Tombigbee; Yalobusha
MO199619981Independence-Sugar
NE199820062Big Papillion-Mosquito; Missouri Region
OK201820202Illinois; Lower Canadian
TN199320208Holston; Lower Clinch; Lower Cumberland-Sycamore; Lower French Broad; Lower Little Tennessee; Upper Duck; Upper Elk; Watts Bar Lake
TX195920217Buffalo-San Jacinto; East Fork Trinity; East Galveston Bay; Lower West Fork Trinity; Upper Trinity; Upper West Fork Trinity; West Fork San Jacinto
WI1935201912Buffalo-Whitewater; La Crosse-Pine; Lake Michigan; Lake Winnebago; Lower Fox; Manitowoc-Sheboygan; Middle Rock; Milwaukee; Rush-Vermillion; Upper Fox; Upper Rock; Wolf

Table last updated 12/11/2024

† Populations may not be currently present.


Means of Introduction: Yellow Bass are intentionally stocked for sportfishing. They have gained access to the upper Tombigbee River through the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway (Boschung 1992). A recent collection from Browning Oxbow, Kansas, may be a result of migration from stocked Lake Icaria, Iowa (Mosher, personal communication). Dallmier (2005) suggested that presence in Queen City Lake was the result of an illegal stocking by anglers.

Status: Reported as established in Arizona (Rinne 1995) and Wisconsin (Helm 1958). Stockings in Kansas in the late 1800s failed to produce sustaining populations (Cross 1967). However, Yellow Bass have more recently been collected from Browning Oxbow in Kansas (Mosher, personal communication). The status of the other introductions is unknown.  This species was only reported in Michigan and is not likely established (Cudmore-Vokey and Crossman 2000).

Impact of Introduction: When stocked in the native range of the white bass M. chrysops these two species hybridize (Fries and Harvey 1989).

Remarks: None.

References: (click for full references)

Anonymous.  1992.1991 Angler Recognition Entries - Freshwater. Texas Parks & Wildlife News (January 24, 1992). 5 pp.

Burr, B. M., and M. L. Warren, Jr. 1986. A distributional atlas of Kentucky fishes. Kentucky Nature Preserves Commission Scientific and Technical Series 4. 398 pp.

Cross, F. B. 1967. Handbook of Fishes of Kansas. State Biological Survey and University of Kansas Museum of Natural History, Miscellaneous Publication 45, Topeka, KS.

Cudmore-Vokey, B. and E.J. Crossman. 2000. Checklists of the fish fauna of the Laurentian Great Lakes and their connecting channels. Can. MS Rpt. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 2500: v + 39p.

Dallmier, K. 2005. Queen City Lake fisheries management plan. Georgia Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division, Social Circle, GA.

Fries, L.T., and W.D. Harvey. 1989. Natural hybridization of white bass with yellow bass in Texas. Transactions American Fisheries Soceity 118(1):87-89.

Helm, W. T. 1958. A "new" fish in Wisconsin. Wisconsin Conservation Bulletin 23(7):1-3.

Lee, D. S., C. R. Gilbert, C. H. Hocutt, R. E. Jenkins, D. E. McAllister, and J. R. Stauffer, Jr. 1980 et seq. Atlas of North American freshwater fishes. North Carolina State Museum of Natural History, Raleigh, NC.

Miller, R.R. and C.H. Lowe. 1967. Part 2. Fishes of Arizona, p 133-151, In: C.H. Lowe, ed. The Vertebrates of Arizona. University of Arizona Press. Tucson.

Page, L. M., and B. M. Burr. 1991. A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. The Peterson Field Guide Series, volume 42. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, MA.

Rasmussen, J.L. 1998. Aquatic nuisance species of the Mississippi River basin. 60th Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference, Aquatic Nuisance Species Symposium, Dec. 7, 1998, Cincinnati, OH.

Rinne, J. N. 1994. The effects of introduced fishes on native fishes: Arizona, southwestern United States. World fisheries congress, May 1992, Athens, Greece.

Other Resources:
Distribution in Illinois - ILNHS

FishBase Summary

Author: Pam Fuller, and Matt Neilson

Revision Date: 8/14/2019

Peer Review Date: 6/4/2013

Citation Information:
Pam Fuller, and Matt Neilson, 2024, Morone mississippiensis Jordan and Eigenmann in Eigenmann, 1887: U.S. Geological Survey, Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database, Gainesville, FL, https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID=785, Revision Date: 8/14/2019, Peer Review Date: 6/4/2013, Access Date: 12/11/2024

This information is preliminary or provisional and is subject to revision. It is being provided to meet the need for timely best science. The information has not received final approval by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and is provided on the condition that neither the USGS nor the U.S. Government shall be held liable for any damages resulting from the authorized or unauthorized use of the information.

Disclaimer:

The data represented on this site vary in accuracy, scale, completeness, extent of coverage and origin. It is the user's responsibility to use these data consistent with their intended purpose and within stated limitations. We highly recommend reviewing metadata files prior to interpreting these data.

Citation information: U.S. Geological Survey. [2024]. Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database. Gainesville, Florida. Accessed [12/11/2024].

Contact us if you are using data from this site for a publication to make sure the data are being used appropriately and for potential co-authorship if warranted.

For general information and questions about the database, contact Wesley Daniel. For problems and technical issues, contact Matthew Neilson.