Bruce M. Saul

Of 109,675 striped bass (Morone saxatilis) stocked in June 1979 in Cherokee Reservoir, Tennessee, only 72 were recaptured. They were stocked at a mean total length of 3.5 cm and averaged 21.7 cm after I year of growth. After stocking, striped bass consumed mostly Crustacea, with Chironomidae being the primary food source for the rest of the year. Striped bass switched from invertebrates to fish (primarily Clupeidae) at 20 cm or approximately 1 year after stocking. Condition values (K) ranged from 0.8 to 1.3.

A total of 791 young-of-year white bass (Morone chrysops) from 2 East Tennessee reservoirs were examined to determine food habits and growth. An effort was made to determine when they switched from an insectivorous to a piscivorous diet. White bass in Cherokee Reservoir consumed primarily insects (Chironomidae) during their first year and in Norris Reservoir, primarily zooplankton (Cladocera). When they began consuming fish, young-of-year white bass in Cherokee Reservoir were between 2.5 and 5.0 cm in length while white bass in Norris Reservoir were between 5.0 and 7.5 cm. Numbers of fish...

Of 80,000 hybrid striped bass (Marone chrysops X Marone saxatilis) stocked in June 1980 in Cherokee Reservoir, Tennessee, only 206 were recaptured. They were stocked at a mean total length of 4.5 cm and averaged 21.5 cm after 7 months of growth. After stocking, hybrids consumed mostly Crustacea, with Chironomidae being the primary food source in fish 5.0 to 12.0 cm in length. Fish first appeared in the diet when hybrids were 5.0 cm and became more abundant as the hybrids grew larger. Condition values (K) for hybrids ranged from 0.9 to 1.2.