It’s First Light and there you are standing on dock, rod in hand. Did I catch a trophy worth releasing back into the water? Or was that a dinner-worthy fish? What’s that, you ask? It’s a moment of truth that captures the heart of the striped bass experience better then all the lures in the world can.
Here is the breakdown: The chart above show the relationship between size and age. It helps us understand what happens when we’re making our split second decisions, because it tells us why our gut may be telling us something different. For starters, most people think that stripers gets bigger each year at the same rate. We figure one year equals X pounds. But that’s not how it works. A striper puts on his most noticeable bulk while he’s young. From hatchling to schoolie, he grows like mad. And then when he get older, the pace decreases a lot. When you find yourself battling a twenty pounder, you’re no longer fighting for inches; you’re fighting for mass.
Why Big Fish Are Usually Females
Where things become interesting is in the gender difference. Male striper become sexually mature at about two years old. By then, they’re frequently only fourteen inches long. Female strippers wait longer, much longer. They don’t even begin to think about breeding until they’ve reached a much larger size and age. They still grow aggressive during this time. Once the boys stop stretching, however, the girls’ continued growth becomes apparent from the chart. The females take over the top size classes. If everything goes right, they grow into giant cows pushing beyond the forty-inch mark.
Why do you suppose all your big fish end up being females? It is due to biology. These fish are old; they’ve made several spawning runs. They’ve also learned to out-compete the rest of the pack for dinner. That’s why the huge ones are such a main focus of conservation efforts. One big ol’ fifty-pound cow has millions of eggs inside her. Her smaller sister have far less. You release these big girls not because it feels good, but because the math make sense for keeping the population healthy.
The fish live vastly different lives, which explains the wide variety of factors driving their growth. Inland, land locked striper’s growth paces is no match for migratory ones moving north from the Carolinas all the way up into Maine chasing schools of baitfish. Out on the open coast they have an endless supply of high calorie food items such as herring and menhaden. This fuel their rapid weight gain. On the contrary, their limited space confines them to reservoir fish. They also must contend with a smaller forage base. Typically these fish top out far under the 30-pound mark.
Knowing this help change your approach to fishing. So if you’re on a lake, get off the idea you’ll find ocean sized monsters here. Adjust your expectations to the reality of habitat. That fish swimming around your home lake is probably livig out its best life considering the constraints of both stocked prey and warm water. It might not ever be trophy size, but it thrives inside the limits of what it has.
To catch them, however, it’s important that you match your tactics according to the age class of fish. When they’re young schoolie stripers in the fifteen- to twenty-inch size class, they’re aggressive surface hunters. They’ll knock the snot out of a popping plug early in the mornings, often hitting those poppers like firecrackers. Those are the fun ones. They put up a great show. They offer good filleting qualities. They provide some high-action thrills. As they mature into the twenty-five-to-thirty-inch bracket, they can be more particular and is often found holding dark water or deeper structure throughout the day. Hook one of the big girls (usually over thirty pounds) and you’ve got yourself a seasoned veteran. And that means heavy tackle and patience. Knowing what class of fish you’re pursuing before ever tying on your leader are the key.
All of this hinges on water temperature. Striped bass are at their peak metabolism between fifty five and seventy degrees Fahrenheit. That’s a small sweet spot. They are on fire then. Hungry. They will eat. Below or above that and they’re lethargic. They might not even eat. Stay on top of the surface temperatures. Find the schools of baitfish. From there, go right to the predator. Follow the birds. Look for diving activity. Throw up-current of structure first thing in the morning and late in the day. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? The key is being there when the fish want to eat. If you lose the bite, more than likely the fish have already moved and/or the water has gotten outside their comfort zone.
Fishing for stripers isn’t so much about beating mother nature as it’s about deciphering her. Every catch is significant; you’re releasing a spawning female to keep the species’ future stock going. You’re keeping a nice size schoolie for dinner. It’s all connected, and knowing which phase of the life cycle you caught that fish in adds something to the experience. Sure, the growth cycles can get complicated, but the payoff doesn’t disappoint. At the end of your outing, not only will you head home with a stuffed cooler, you’ll head home with a greater appreciation for the ecosystem. Not bad, right? There are two things to celebrate.