Tiny Lake Austell in Northeast Arkansas’ Village Creek State Park is a well-known big bass spot. It regularly gives up 8-pound largemouths, and Kevin Riney believed he could catch a bass weighing more than 10-pounds from Austell. That fish would be the first bass entered in the new-this-year Arkansas “Legacy Lunker Bass” program.
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Legacy Lunker Program is modeled after Texas’ famed Toyota ShareLunker program, focusing on growing more double-digit largemouth bass by combining Florida-strain genetics with advanced fisheries management. Anglers who catch live bass weighing 10 pounds or more from January through March can donate those fish to the program, where biologists will spawn them in a controlled environment to produce large numbers of genetically superior fry. Both the fingerlings and the adult female bass are then returned to the waters where they were caught, strengthening local trophy potential.
The program is already generating excitement among Arkansas anglers, especially on warm-water lakes like Hamilton, Millwood, Ouachita, and DeGray, where Florida bass are thriving. In addition to building better bass fisheries, the Legacy Lunker Program will recognize anglers who catch standout fish of all black bass species and collect valuable genetic data to guide future management. While Arkansas may never rival Texas in sheer trophy numbers, fisheries officials believe the program will dramatically increase the number of 10-pound-plus bass statewide—creating a lasting legacy and elevating Arkansas’ reputation as a premier bass fishing destination…