Black Bass Symposium
San Antonio, Texas • August 10 -14, 2025
History
Black bass have arguably been the most sought after and economically important freshwater fish across all of North America for the last 100+ years. As a result, those fisheries have been intensely managed by state and provincial resource management agencies. Although the management practices and conservation strategies employed over the last hundred years have evolved considerably, there have been both new scientific discoveries and environmental challenges that require re-assessing and improving our strategies as we move toward an ever-challenging future.
There have been two Black Bass Symposia held over the last half century. The first, organized by the Sport Fishing Institute (Dick Stroud, Bob Jenkins, Larry Larimore and others), was held in 1975 in Tulsa OK. The second, organized in conjunction with the American Fisheries Society (Dave Philipp, Mark Ridgway, and others), was held in 2000 in St Louis, MO.
Looking back on those two watershed events, it is clear that fisheries science has continued to advance our body of knowledge on the biology, management, and conservation of Black Bass.
Although much has been learned since the 2000 Symposium, it is also clear that the challenges of an uncertain future demand that we continue to improve our black bass management and conservation strategies.
The year 2025 is the 50 th Anniversary of the Tulsa Symposium and the 25 th Anniversary of the St. Louis Symposium.
To celebrate that timing and to address the need for developing innovative black bass management and conservation approaches, the American Fisheries Society (AFS), Texas Parks and Wildlife, and the Fisheries Conservation Foundation (FCF) have come together to organize and co-host the third iteration of this symposium series.
About the Symposium
The objectives of this symposium are to:
1. Define the state of the science concerning black bass and assess the progress made since 1975 and 2000;
2. Discuss ideas for how to improve the management and conservation of black bass;
3. Identify current and potential issues that need to be addressed in the near and distant future;
4. Facilitate new partnerships to address those issues.
Who Should Attend
This symposium will be a confluence of all groups that are invested in the future health of black bass.
- Managers
- Researchers
- Recreational Anglers
- Professional Anglers
- Fishing Industry
There will be a variety of ways for people to participate.
Attendance at the BB2025 Symposium will be open to all full-time registrants for the annual AFS meeting. Registration to the AFS Meeting will allow access to all BB2025 symposium sessions and events.
One-day registration to attend the BB2025 for a single day will also be possible.
In addition, we hope to offer some online webinars, discussion groups, and streaming of some keynote addresses during the symposium.
To receive information and updates on the BB2025, sign-up to be on our mailing list.
Location
San Antonio is in the heart of Texas bass fishing country and is a great setting to bring together the various constituents of the bass fishing world.
San Antonio
The symposium will be held in the heart of historic downtown San Antonio, along the banks of the world-famous River Walk.
Named the first and only World Heritage Site in Texas by the United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO), the designation includes the city’s four southernmost Spanish colonial missions – Concepción, San José, San Juan, Espada, and the famous Alamo.
Program
The symposium will be held over four days in conjunction with the 155th American Fisheries Society Annual Meeting.
The full program will be posted when it is completed.
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
MONDAY & TUESDAY: Concurrent Technical Sessions covering various aspects of ecology, management, and conservation topics.
WEDNESDAY: Two plenary sessions that have invited speakers to introduce key topics followed by a panel discussion and to field questions from the audience.
- Wednesday AM Session: Future Casting to identify key issues facing black bass
- Wednesday PM Session: Building a Science-Management-Angling-Industry Nexus to address future needs of black bass.
THURSDAY: Presentations for - Anglers and industry leaders - Angling seminars by professional anglers
An invitation only Bass Summit that will use a round-table discussion approach on building solutions.
PLENARY SPEAKERS
GARY KLEIN
Gary Klein has made a career centered on his love of bass fishing. He is unique an established leader in all the sectors of recreational fishing, including tournament competition, promoting sound fisheries management, and as an innovator within the angling industry.
Gary is a 2018 inductee into the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame and has claimed 30 BASS Classic Qualifications, 8 BASS Tour Wins, 2 FLW Tour Wins, a U.S. Open Championship and has twice been named BASS Angler of the Year.
DR. STEVEN COOKE
Steven Cooke has a long and diverse background working on the black basses. His work is multi-disciplinary, including the sustainability of recreational fisheries, aquatic habitat restoration, movement ecology, and stress physiology. He has published more than 700 peer reviewed papers on topics such as conservation science, knowledge mobilization and enabling interdisciplinary approaches.
Steve is a leader in taking science “beyond the lab” and works closely with practitioners, policy-makers and stakeholders for cooperative knowledge exchange. His experience working with the angling community, policymakers, and the fishing industry is impressive.
Steve has received a large number of awards for his exemplary work and is a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society and is Secretary of the College of the Royal Society of Canada.
More to come!
Important Dates
Call for Papers
Abstract submission is now open until April 15th. Abstracts can be submitted at: https://afsannualmeeting.fisheries.org/call-for-abstracts/ . Look for BB2025
Early-bird Registration
Registration is be through the American Fisheries Society Conference website and includes all events associated with the AFS annual meeting. Early bird registration will end on Wednesday, June 4th at 11:59PM EDT. All registration rates are in USD. Note: AFS members can save up to $200 on registration rates. Registration is now open at: https://afsannualmeeting.fisheries.org/registration/
Symposium
August 10-14, 2025
Mailing List Sign-up
The Black Bass 2025 steering committee is encouraging all parties that are interested in Black Bass to get involved.
If you would like to be included on our mailing list, please click the link below to add your name and contact information.
Inquiries
We will update the information about the Black Bass 2025 Symposium on this site as it becomes available.
For inquiries or questions, send an email to: BlackBass2025@fishconserve.org
