Using Electrofishing Catch Rates to Estimate the Density of Largemouth Bass

Catch rates are commonly used to indirectly index population density, e.g., nighttime electrofishing to survey Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides populations. However, the relationship between catch rate and population density must be known in order for catch rate to serve as an accurate index. We sought to determine if Largemouth Bass electrofishing catch rate was linearly or nonlinearly correlated to population density in high density populations using measurement-error models and Monte Carlo simulations. Previous studies of the relationship between Largemouth Bass electrofishing catch rate and density have occurred in low-density populations (