Photo by Tom Evans

Rob Weller is quite fond of the Gulf Coast striped bass. He refers to the species as a "neat fish." From an angling, ecological and historical standpoint, it's hard not to agree with him.

Weller, the Fisheries Section supervisor for Region 5 of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division (WRD), plays a hands-on role in the propagation and restoration of this true bass, whose native range once encompassed nearly all of the rivers and estuaries along the northern Gulf Coast. Originally found from Texas to Florida's Suwannee River and inland to St. Louis, Mo., on the Mississippi River, the fish was avidly pursued by anglers and commercial fishermen from the late 1800s through the early 1960s.

Today, except for a remnant native population in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) River system in northwest Florida and southwest Georgia, the fish is no longer common throughout its range.

In 1987, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, along with state wildlife agencies in Georgia, Florida and Alabama, established a program to restore and maintain healthy populations of Gulf stripers in the ACF river system. This continues to be a boon to sportfishermen in the region, including those in southwest Georgia, where striped bass fishing is not exactly considered a traditional pursuit.

Hatching, stocking and management programs under the auspices of the participating agencies are supplementing native striper populations and allowing southwest Georgia anglers to enjoy some very good seasonal fishing for this sport-worthy species. Mature ACF-system stripers are regularly collected by WRD personnel and spawned at the Welaka National Fish Hatchery in Florida. Young fish are then shipped to various federal and state hatcheries to be raised and stocked according to the striped bass management plan.

All seems well at present, and it looks as if Rob Weller's "neat fish" is once again a vital part of the region's angling opportunities.

"In our region," Weller explained, "the stripers spend the hot summer months in what we call cool-water refuges. These are springs located primarily up and down the Flint River and in Lake Seminole. This is particularly true of the bigger fish. When a striped bass reaches about 15 pounds, he needs the cool water of the springs to survive. In fact, they are so concentrated and abundant in the springs through the hottest part of the summer, fishing for them is not allowed from May 1 through Oct. 31. They're pretty easy pickings during that time period. You can really decimate them."

In the fall, according to Weller, the fish leave the cool-water springs and "sort of roam all over the place." Then, in late winter and early spring, which falls in January and February, they head up the Flint and Chattahoochee rivers.

"They disperse in the fall when water temperatures equalize to the temperature in the springs," he said. "When the days begin lengthening in late January and February, they start moving up the rivers. This movement is triggered by spawning instinct. When they reach the dam tailraces at Albany (on the Flint) and Andrews (on the Chattahoochee), they are more interested in spawning than in the large concentrations of shad in these areas."

Although the reproductive urge is primarily driving them, stripers do actively feed at this time.

"They are shad-eaters and like bigger prey items," said Weller. "They feed on threadfin shad and are especially fond of the larger gizzard shad. They definitely like a nice mouthful. During the spring run, they can be caught on a variety of lures."