NEWS RELEASE

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

April 1997

CONTACT: David Yeager: (850) 957-4172

BIOLOGISTS SPAWN CAPTIVE STRIPED BASS BROOD FISH

Personnel at the Blackwater Fisheries Research and Development Center located in Holt, Florida have been producing fingerling striped bass and hybrid striped bass for stocking in Florida public waters since 1989. Typically, this process involves collecting wild striped bass brood fish from panhandle rivers and lakes. These fish are transported to the Research Center and spawned. After spawning these fish are normally released back into the river from which they were captured.

Recently, biologists have been conducting research to determine if the wild striped bass spawned at this center can be maintained in tanks and spawned again the following year. This spring biologists at the Research Center did just that. A female striped bass, captured from the Apalachicola River and spawned at the Research Center last year, spawned again this year. After spawning last year, the fish was kept in a special conditioning tank in which water temperature and lighting were regulated to mimic seasonal changes the fish would experience in nature. When captured in the spring of 1996 this fish weighed 14 pounds and produced 62,000 fry (newly hatched fish) when spawned. This year she weighed 17 pounds and produced 370,000 fry. Three male striped bass, also held in the special conditioning tanks, were used to spawn with the female. One male was collected from the Apalachicola River in 1996. The other two were five year old males raised from fry at the Research Center since 1992.

There are several advantages to maintaining captive striped bass brood fish from year to year. One is that time, money and effort can be saved by not having to collect fish from area waters. Also, during some years few brood fish are available due to unfavorable seasonal changes in temperatures and water levels. By adjusting temperature and lighting in holding tanks, biologists can better control when brood fish will spawn. By controlling spawning times the fish production season can be extended because biologists do not have to wait for wild fish to be captured.

Biologists at the Research Center are planning to expand efforts to spawn captive fish next year. Presently there are six female and seven male striped bass being held at the Research Center, ranging in weight from 3 to 22 pounds. If successful, the spawning of these captive fish will greatly enhance striped bass and hybrid striped bass fingerling production, resulting in a greater number of fish stockings in Florida’s public waters.