Biologists working to increase striped bass populations in Florida
FWC sketch of striped bass.
To survive the warmer summer months in Florida, adult striped bass must find areas of cool water that are referred to as thermal refuges. These thermal refuges typically take the form of creeks or springs that flow into mainstem rivers and lakes.
From February to March of 2023, freshwater fisheries biologists with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) collected and tagged adult striped bass in Lake Talquin with radio tags so they could be tracked throughout the summer to identify critical thermal refuges. Lake Talquin is a reservoir located on the Ochlockonee River, about 10 miles west of Tallahassee between Leon County and Gadsden County in north Florida.
Lake Talquin and the tailrace (a water channel below a dam or water mill) below the Jackson Bluff Dam provide habitat for a popular striped bass fishery in the Florida Panhandle. The system also serves as the primary location for the collection, each year, of adult striped bass that are spawned by state and federal hatcheries in Florida, Georgia and Alabama that participate in Gulf striped bass restoration efforts. In recent years, the larger striped bass required for spawning purposes have become increasingly rare during spawning stock collection efforts. This system currently offers a marginal summertime habitat for adult striped bass, and high levels of natural mortality during the summer months likely contributes to the reduction of larger, older fish.
“We track fish using radio tags, and follow their movements every week,” said Stephen Stang, freshwater fisheries biologist with the FWC Division of Freshwater Fisheries Management. “Once we locate a fish, we drop a temperature probe in the water to determine the temperature of their habitat and monitor their survival in a particular area. Where we locate these fish in the summer, the water temperature is typically ten to fifteen degrees cooler than the main part of the lake. We let the fish guide us to the most optimal areas, like a cool-seeking missile.”
This project aims to locate important thermal refuges in Lake Talquin and evaluate if any of these areas would benefit from habitat restoration efforts. Conserving and potentially enhancing the flows of creeks and springs relied upon by adult striped bass could improve their survival, resulting in more adult fish in the population for both anglers and hatchery programs participating in Gulf striped bass restoration efforts. Without the striped bass population in Lake Talquin and the lower Ochlockonee River, obtaining a reliable source of hatchery fish would become increasingly challenging.
FWC’s freshwater fisheries biologists have identified several thermal refuge areas that were previously unknown prior to this project, and they will continue to monitor the striped bass population in Lake Talquin and the lower Ochlockonee River to conserve this species and its critical habitat.
In Florida, striped bass are found primarily in the St. Johns River and its tributaries, and a few panhandle rivers such as the Ochlockonee River.
For general waterbody information, fishing forecasts, virtual tours, plant control operation schedules and annual work plans, boat ramp information, and more, visit the “What’s Happening on My Lake” website at MyFWC.com/Lakes.
To learn more about FWC’s freshwater fisheries management activities, visit MyFWC.com/Freshwater.