Since stripers were first introduced into Norris
Reservoir in 1966, some non-striper fishermen have blamed stripers for
the periodic decline in the population of other game fish such as black
bass, walleyes, crappies, etc. It is easy to understand their concerns
as a large striper is at the top of the food chain and it could readily
prey upon the young and juvenile members of almost every other fish species
in the lake. But is this the case? There have been numerous studies on
other lakes in Tennessee and other Southeastern lakes which indicate that
the primary food for stripers is the shad and that stripers do not have
a negative impact on other game species. However, many non-striper Norris
Reservoir fisherman in the mid- 80's did not think that these studies were
relevant to Norris due to its lower forage fish base, high water clarity
and the relative lack of cover. The stripers had to be preying on their
bass, crappie and walleye and in significant quantities to hurt their population!
As a result the TWRA conducted a study to determine
just exactly what the Norris Reservoir stripers were eating. To accomplish
this, the stomach contents of 428 stripers collected from Norris between
March 1988 and January 1991 were analyzed. The results of this study, which
I have summarized in this article, were published in the 1991 May-June
edition of Tennessee Wildlife in an article by Dave Bishop of the TWRA.
I obtained this article and several others from Doug Petersen who is a
fisheries biologist with the TWRA.
The results of this study indicate that only 15
of the 428 stripers analyzed had game fish in their stomachs. Eleven of
these were Bluegills and four of these Bluegills had hook holes in them
indicating that they were being used as bait for stripers. Only one stripers
had a bass in its stomach. By far the overwhelming food found in these
stripers were shad - both gizzard and threadfin. It fact the stomach contents
of three of the stripers contained over 200 small shad. While the results
of this study were not what some anglers wanted to hear, they do closely
parallel the results of other studies. The bottom line is that the introduction
of stripers into Norris or any other East Tennessee lake has not had a
negative impact on other game fish and the stripers are not responsible
for any periodic declines in their population. This has now been proven
many times and it should be accepted by all as true. Another article that
I obtained from Doug Petersen contained the following quote from Pete Elkins
in Bassmaster Magazine. " All available evidence indicates that stripers
help, not hurt, largemouth populations in the same lake. The two bass are
the "best of neighbors", a fact which provides Bassmasters with double
enjoyment".
When you study all of the available articles on
this issue as I have attempted to do, you have to take your hat off to
the TWRA. By introducing stripers into Tennessee waters they created a
whole new fishery which now provides countless hours of enjoyment for many
Tennessee residents and anglers from all over. Furthermore they accomplished
this without affecting the other game fish. To me that is really amazing
as seldom can you change anything without some negative side effects.
I realize that almost all members of the TSBA know that stripers
eat primarily shad and that they do not negatively impact other game fish.
However you now know the source of this information. If you want to analyze
the study for yourself, then contact the TWRA or get a back copy of the
1991 May-June edition of Tennessee Wildlife.