The Striped Bass

Striped Bass were officially introduced to Lake Sydney Lanier in 1974. After the discovery of this saltwater species of fish could live in fresh water for a full life cycle, it was added to the population of large area/cold water lakes as a means of controlling a common problem.

One of the biggest problems, when man changes the natural order of things, there is always and immediate reaction in nature to that change. So when they created Lake Sydney Lanier for the needs of other concerns, and other man made lakes, there arouse the problem of the uncontrolled growth of the native bait fish in the lake. Gizzard Shad and Threadfin Shad reproduced beyond what natural predators could cull down. Largemouth Bass are territorial fish and only cover a limited range in that territory. Kentucky Spotted Bass, similar to large mouth, is territorial as well and was introduced to Lake Lanier as a means of controlling the shad population. But that didn't work either because of their limited territorial range. Something else needed to be done. At the time, the only other solution was to introduce Lake Trout to the lake in an effort to cull the numbers of bait fish per acre down. For many a year Lake Lanier became very popular for its Lake Trout. But still there was a problem in keeping the numbers of Threadfin Shad down because they were primarily a warm water species of fish. Trout were strictly cold water creatures and had very little impact on the bait population because of that difference. So the problem continued to exist for many years and was of great concern to the Department of Natural Recourses.

Sometime in the late 1950s while building Santee Cooper Lake, a discovery was made about Striped Bass. Originally thought of as a saltwater species of fish, Striped Bass would come from the ocean and migrate up fresh water rivers, like the Savannah River, to spawn and then return to the ocean once the spawning rituals were complete. This ritual spawning always occurred in the early spring of each year for centuries. It just so happened that the Dam for the creation of Santee Cooper Lake was finished and landlocked during this same time of year and the Striped Bass were trapped into the newly formed lake! They were unable to return to the ocean. The authorities were apparently unaware of the migration of this species of fish because it caught everyone by complete surprise! The newly formed lake not only had the expected population of Largemouth Bass, Catfish, and other common species, but it also had an over abundant number of healthy Striped Bass! This was unexpected. So they carried out a study on the impact the Striped Bass might have on this new lake and found little to no negative impact to the normal population of natural fish at all! In fact, the normal problem of having too many bait fish in this one man made lake simply did not exist because this new predator was a Nomadic Species. It roamed the lake seeking out concentrations of bait fish and would feed on them in areas the other predators were not affecting at all. They could not reproduce in the lake because of the need for moving water. And they had an average life span of 10 years, which meant their numbers could be controlled. After ten years of careful research as to how many fish of this species were needed per acre in order to create some form of balance, and after controlled studies were carried out, it was an accepted practice to introduce these Striped Bass to area lakes that qualified for such an application. Lake Sydney Lanier met those qualifications. And Striped Bass were introduced as a balancing agent to the ever growing population of bait fish in the lake. They actually filled a void in the new Eco System! It also became a good attractor for local fishing sport, and increased local commerce in many different ways as well.

So here we are today with these wonderful fish! Averaging in size from 7- 15 lbs, with many of these fish ranging from 20 to 50 lbs! Almost like a fisherman’s dream come true! We get to catch these fish and experience a saltwater fight in a fresh water lake! What could be better than that? The challenge comes in learning how this predator behaves and reacts to this environment. So I have made it my business to find out as much about this fish as I can, and then try to simplify it so you can understand what is going on in his underwater world. Go fishing with me and see just how much you can learn...
Thank You,
Captain Quin Frank
770-503-5955