LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission is surveying anglers to help identify trends and areas where the resource can be managed more effectively.
Jason Olive, assistant chief of the commission’s Fisheries Division, said this is the first survey of its kind done in Arkansas since 2000.
“We’re sending out 10,000 surveys to randomly selected Arkansas residents who purchased a license in 2016,” Olive said. “We sell around 375,000 licenses per year, so the odds of any individual getting one will be pretty small.”
He said when done in a scientific manner with randomly selected participants, the results from the sample size will reflect the overall population’s answers extremely well.
“As always, we will have public comment periods later this year for suggestions and input from avid anglers,” Olive said. “This survey is meant for all anglers, no matter if they fished one day or 100. Everyone’s input is critical to paint the whole picture of what the public wants and how we can improve how we serve them.”
Ben Batten, commission assistant chief, also pointed out the survey is being conducted by an outside contractor to ensure the process is handled without influence from agency staff.
Batten said Mississippi State University was chosen to complete the survey work. No in-state agencies or organizations submitted a bid.
“MSU has vast experience in this field, conducting these types of surveys for Mississippi, Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico, and will do an excellent job,” he said. “But don’t be surprised when you see a Mississippi State logo on the envelope.”
The survey is the first of three to be conducted in the next few years to gauge trends in angling and better understand what anglers want when they visit a lake, river or stream in Arkansas.
“This isn’t just about bass anglers, or trout anglers or crappie anglers,” Batten said. “This is about everyone who wets a line in Arkansas, so even if you only went bream fishing once with friends last year, taking 10 to 15 minutes to fill out this survey will help us learn how to make that experience better next time.”
“Everyone’s input is critical to paint the whole picture of what the public wants and how we can improve how we serve them.”
— Jason Olive, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission