Edge’s Aquatic Services announce rare Oxbow bass growth results

Edge’s Aquatic Services announced on Thursday, May 1, 2025, they had observed rare growth rates in their F1 Largemouth Oxbow Bass over a nine month period. 

According to a press release, the bass which had been placed in a client’s pond in July 2024 all measured approximately 4.5 inches. When measured again on Friday, April 4, 2025, by Keith Edge and Ethan Edge, all the bass in the pond weighed 1 pound or more and all measured between 13 inches and 14 inches. 

Among the bass measured, a 14 inch bass weighed 1 pound 14 ounces, a 13.5 inch bass weighed 1 pound 9 ounces and a 13 inch bass weighed 1 pound 6 ounces. The company had observed similar growth rates in another client’s pond with the same fish, with bass being measured almost 2 pounds over the course of 11 months.

Bass like the F1 Largemouth Oxbow Bass serve as apex predators in an ecosystem, keeping other fish populations in a given freshwater pond in check. Without them, a pond can become overcrowded, leading to malnourished fish and poor water quality due to algae. 

“You have to have that predator in there, and he’s got to perform to keep the water body from getting overpopulated,” said owner Keith Edge. “Because, if not, you’re gonna wind up with a fishkill eventually, or you’re gonna have a bunch of fish that’s not big enough to eat.”

The bass can serve this role due to its titular large mouth, allowing it to eat more of the smaller fish. Fish which grow too large to fit in the bass’ mouth are then large enough to be caught and eaten by fishermen.

“It’s gotta fit in his mouth for him to eat it, so if he’s controlling the bottom end of your pond so to speak, then smaller stuff will grow and it’ll get big enough that he can’t eat it,” said Edge. “And then you can catch that for yourself to eat.”

The company, which has been stocking ponds since 2000, spawned its first strand of F1 Largemouth Bass in 2024, and began spawning another of the strand in 2025. Edge’s Aquatic Services specifically bred their Oxbow Bass to prioritize performance, survivability, fast growth and aggression. 

“We put 40 oxbows in a 20 acre lake, and then two days after we put those fish in, that guy and his son caught 26 of them,” said Edge.

To track bass placed in clients’ ponds for measurement, the company uses a special marking technique known only to the employees and customers. Employees try to measure bass growth rates every one or two weeks, using this unique method to identify which bass were introduced by Edge’s Aquatic Services.

According to Edge, the 2025 spawn are showing similar growth rates as the 2024 spawn, but the company does not yet have any long term data regarding the bass. Nevertheless, the F1 Largemouth Oxbow Bass contributes to Edge’s Aquatic Services’ stated goal of providing quality pond management to clients.

“I want people to buy something quality, you know, that’s gonna perform and do the job that he’s supposed to do,” said Edge. “That’s the goal.”