Stripers
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The striped bass is native to the United States and Canada. It is found from the lower St. Lawrence River in Canada to Northern Florida, and along portions of the Gulf of Mexico. The striped bass have been prized in Massachusetts since colonial times. Today, they support both recreational and commercial fisheries in Massachusetts. Striped bass is by far one of the most important fish to local anglers. The Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) does much research to support the proper management of the species.
AppearanceStriped bass can weigh over 100 pounds, but it is rare to find one over 50 pounds. Females are far larger than males.Striped bass have large mouths and jaws that extend below the eye. The body of the fish is blueish to dark olive, with silver sides and belly. There are also 7 or 8 stripes that run from the head to tail of the fish. Striped bass biology and habitats in MassachusettsMost striped bass in Massachusetts come from Chesapeake Bay, Delaware River, and Hudson River. Striped bass normally do not migrate during the first two years of life. From tagging research, we have learned that striped bass migrate northward in the spring and summer months and return south in the fall. Fish from Chesapeake Bay exhibit more extensive migrations and are caught as far north as the Bay of Fundy in coastal Canada. A few striped bass stay in Massachusetts waters during winter.
Striped bass can live up to 40 years and reach weights greater than 100 pounds. However, individuals larger than 50 pounds are rare. The all-tackle angling record fish was caught in Connecticut in 2011 and weighed 81½ pounds. The Massachusetts record is a 73-pound fish caught at Nauset Beach in 1981.
Females grow larger than males and most stripers over 30 pounds are female. The number of eggs produced by a female striped bass is directly related to the size of its body; a 12-pound female may produce about 850,000 eggs, and a 55-pound female about 4,200,000 eggs. Males are able to spawn starting when they are two or three years of age, but females do not begin to spawn until they are at least five or six years of age. Stripers reproduced in rivers and the brackish areas of estuaries. Spawning occurs from the spring to early summer, with the greatest activity occurring when the water warms to about 65 degrees F. The eggs drift in currents until they hatch 1 ½ to 3 days after being fertilized. Because newly hatched larvae are nearly helpless; striped bass suffer their highest rate of natural mortality during the several weeks after hatching.
Striped bass are rarely found more than several miles from the shoreline. Anglers usually catch stripers in river mouths, in small, shallow bays and estuaries, and along rocky shorelines and sandy beaches. The striped bass is a schooling species, moving about in small groups during the first two years of life, and thereafter feeding and migrating in large schools.
Striped bass eat a variety of foods, including fish such as alewives, flounder, sea herring, menhaden, mummichogs, sand lance, silver hake, tomcod, smelt, silversides, and eels, as well as lobsters, crabs, soft clams, small mussels, sea worms, and squid. Feeding occurs throughout the day, although night feeding does occur. Because striped bass are so abundant in Massachusetts waters during summer, their feeding can impact populations of prey important to other fish species.
AppearanceStriped bass can weigh over 100 pounds, but it is rare to find one over 50 pounds. Females are far larger than males.Striped bass have large mouths and jaws that extend below the eye. The body of the fish is blueish to dark olive, with silver sides and belly. There are also 7 or 8 stripes that run from the head to tail of the fish. Striped bass biology and habitats in MassachusettsMost striped bass in Massachusetts come from Chesapeake Bay, Delaware River, and Hudson River. Striped bass normally do not migrate during the first two years of life. From tagging research, we have learned that striped bass migrate northward in the spring and summer months and return south in the fall. Fish from Chesapeake Bay exhibit more extensive migrations and are caught as far north as the Bay of Fundy in coastal Canada. A few striped bass stay in Massachusetts waters during winter.
Striped bass can live up to 40 years and reach weights greater than 100 pounds. However, individuals larger than 50 pounds are rare. The all-tackle angling record fish was caught in Connecticut in 2011 and weighed 81½ pounds. The Massachusetts record is a 73-pound fish caught at Nauset Beach in 1981.
Females grow larger than males and most stripers over 30 pounds are female. The number of eggs produced by a female striped bass is directly related to the size of its body; a 12-pound female may produce about 850,000 eggs, and a 55-pound female about 4,200,000 eggs. Males are able to spawn starting when they are two or three years of age, but females do not begin to spawn until they are at least five or six years of age. Stripers reproduced in rivers and the brackish areas of estuaries. Spawning occurs from the spring to early summer, with the greatest activity occurring when the water warms to about 65 degrees F. The eggs drift in currents until they hatch 1 ½ to 3 days after being fertilized. Because newly hatched larvae are nearly helpless; striped bass suffer their highest rate of natural mortality during the several weeks after hatching.
Striped bass are rarely found more than several miles from the shoreline. Anglers usually catch stripers in river mouths, in small, shallow bays and estuaries, and along rocky shorelines and sandy beaches. The striped bass is a schooling species, moving about in small groups during the first two years of life, and thereafter feeding and migrating in large schools.
Striped bass eat a variety of foods, including fish such as alewives, flounder, sea herring, menhaden, mummichogs, sand lance, silver hake, tomcod, smelt, silversides, and eels, as well as lobsters, crabs, soft clams, small mussels, sea worms, and squid. Feeding occurs throughout the day, although night feeding does occur. Because striped bass are so abundant in Massachusetts waters during summer, their feeding can impact populations of prey important to other fish species.