To Kill Or Not To Kill (Stripers): That is the question????????
This post may generate a bit of controversy/discussion. However, hearing so much dis-information for so long has me wanting to clear some things up.
Had the opportunity to hear from a fisheries biologist in person on a few things Striper, DVL, etc. and here is what I learned.
1. Stripers lay 100,000 eggs per pound of bodyweight. Largemouth lay 13,000 eggs per pound of body weight. However, Stripers are much bigger and grow much faster then Largemouth. Stripers are brodcast egg layers and just spray out their eggs and split the scene. (Kind of like most parents do these days.) Largemouth will guard their eggs, the fry, the young, which results in a lesser degree of mortality then say a Striper that lays its eggs and exits the scene (theoretically). Sometimes Stripers can spawn more then once a year. So you do the math? Lets say you have a trophy striper, a 25 pounder, that spawns twice a year with a 99% mortaliity rate of the eggs/the fry/the young vs. a 10-pound trophy largemouth that spawns once a year with a mortality rate of 99% on the eggs/fry/young. The winner is......The 25-pound Striper with 50,000 off spring to the 10-pound Largemouth bass and its measely 1,300 off spring. Plus the fry of a Striper grow quicker, Striper at DVL grow to the tune of three pounds a year, further imprinting their reproductive domination. To kill or not to kill.
This is fun lets change the numbers. Best case scenario. Since stripers broadcast spawn lets say their mortality is 99.9% versus a Largemouth egg mortality at 99%. Will give the largemouth the benefit of the doubt since they guard their eggs/fry/young. For the sake of best case scenario lets say our 25 pound striper only spawns once this year. Same as the 10-pound largemouth. The winner is, and still by a landslide........2500 off spring for the Striper and 1300 off spring for the largemouth. And that is not even taking into consideration the fact that striper grow quicker and reach reproductive health faster..and,,the fact that they go grow quicker and out compete the largemouth for food. Yet another factor scewing numbers in the favor of the striper..yikes. Theirs no stopping these guys. To kill or not to kill.
Lets change the numbers yet again. This time we have a five pound largemouth and 10-pound Striper. Since stripers broadcast spawn lets say their mortality is 99.9% versus a Largemouth egg mortality at 99%. Will give the largemouth the benefit of the doubt since they guard their eggs/fry/young. For the sake of best case scenario lets say our 10 pound striper (not 25-pounds anymore) only spawns once this year. Same as the 5-pound largemouth. The winner is........1000 offspring for the Striper and 650 offspring for the largemouth. And that is not even taking into consideration the fact that striper grow quicker and reach reproductive health faster..and,,the fact that they go grow quicker and out compete the largemouth for food. Yet another factor scewing numbers in the favor of the striper..yikes. Theirs no stopping these guys. To kill or not to kill.
Okay, okay lets change the numbers one more time. This time we have a five pound largemouth and 5-pound Striper. Since stripers broadcast spawn lets say their mortality is 99.9% versus a Largemouth egg mortality at 99%. Will give the largemouth the benefit of the doubt since they guard their eggs/fry/young. For the sake of best case scenario lets say our 5 pound striper (not 10-pounds or 25-pounds anymore) only spawns once this year. Same as the 5-pound largemouth. The winner is........500 offspring for the Striper and 650 offspring for the largemouth. Finally, Ive managed to finds a situation where the striper is out produced by the Largemouth. Oh, but wait, that is not even taking into consideration the fact that striper grow quicker and reach reproductive health faster..and,,the fact that they go grow quicker and out compete the largemouth for food, and the fact that their are more five pound stripers in DVL then five pound bass.. ..yikes. Theirs no stopping these guys. To kill or not to kill.
3. According to the biologist Stripers have no issue spawning without running water. If I had a dime for every time someone told me they could not spawn at DVL when in actually they can and are I'd at last be in a Ranger versus a Tracker. Their eggs just need a short period of time to be suspended in the water table and then..bam, bang, hatch time. To kill or not to kill.
4. Their is no mysterious screen or grate that keeps additional stripers or rough species from being added to DVL through the aquaduct water. Im not sure where these rumors get started, but I had my suspicions when I saw a 25-pound carp swim by opening day at DVL.) Thus, another factor compounding the Striper DVL epidemic. If they werent increasing enough through natural reproduction, their are multitudes being brought in through the aquaduct water to add to the numbers. At the very least far more Striped Bass then Largemouth bass are being brought in probably as I type this. to kill or not to kill.
5. The Striper is ocean fish, thus, mother nature is naive to them when they end up in freshwater. Their only predator is you, me, well not so much me, I had been throwing them back until now. To kill or not to kill.
That is the question?????
The Striper Pledge:
I (Insert your name here) do solemly swear to catch Stripers judiciously by any means necessary (within DFG guidelines). I then take the oath to ensure they are not released unharmed to said body of water by making sure they feel the rath of the sharp end of a fillet knife, pocket knife, or any similar blunt instrument of cutting and mangling. Said Stripers will then be filleted and prepared in a manner conducive to tastiness and hunger supressing prepared to ones choosing coupled with any a variety of beverages preferably cold in nature. The sole responsibility with then be bestowed on the digestive system to ensure when the species in question, Stripers, see the light of day again it will at any of a number local sewage treatment facilities.
I take a stand,
(Insert your name here)
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by TaperSteve
