All black bass species have a dull-green base coloring with dark patterns on the sides. Most reach a maximum overall length of 40–60 cm (16–24 in), but some strains of the largemouth bass have been reported to grow to almost 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) in length.[5] In spawning seasons, the male builds a "nest" (spawning ground) in the bed where a female is induced to deposit her eggs, then the male externally fertilizes them. The male continues to guard the eggs and fry until they disperse from the nest.
Various black base species have been introduced into freshwater bodies outside North America, where they become invasive in many instances. In Japan, they have been declared nuisance fish and are subjected to numerous attempts at eradicating them from local ecosystems.[6]
Species
Currently, 13 recognized species are placed in this genus:[7]
A 14th species, the Choctaw bassMicropterus haiaka, has been proposed,[9] but this does not yet appear to have been widely accepted.[7] A further two species, the Altamaha bass and Bartram's bass, are as yet undescribed and have been included under the redeye bass.[10]
A genomic analysis in 2022 described new species and found that the binomials, M. salmoides and M. floridanus as used above are misapplied to the largemouth bass and the Florida bass, this study found that M. salmoides is the valid binomial for the Florida bass, while M. floridanus, is its junior synonym. They also found that the oldest available binomial for the largemouth bass is M. nigricans.[10]
^Rohde, F.C., Arndt, R.G., Lindquist, D.G. & Parnell, J.F. (1996): Freshwater Fishes of the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1994.
^ abcdBaker, W.H., Blanton, R.E. & Johnston, C.E. (2013): Diversity within the Redeye Bass, Micropterus coosae (Perciformes: Centrarchidae) species group, with descriptions of four new species. Zootaxa, 3635 (4): 379–401.
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