Discover Life Cycle of Striped Bass

The striped bass goes by many names. It’s been called striper, linesider, or rockfish. The striped bass is the state fish of Maryland, Rhode Island, and South Carolina. It is also the state saltwater fish of New York, New Jersey, Virginia, and New Hampshire.
 

 
One of the largest striped bass ever recorded was 6 feet 7 inches long. Most adult striped bass are about 4 feet. It’s believed that striped bass can live to be 30 years old.
 
Female striped bass lay their eggs in estuaries (the place where rivers meet the sea) usually during April, May and early June when the water temperature is warm. One female striped bass can lay up to 3 million eggs!
 
If fertilized by the male striped bass, the eggs begin to grow as they float downstream. When time to hatch, the tiny fish is less than 1/4 inch long (the size of a pencil eraser), transparent, and unable to swim against the currents.
 
It has a heavy yolk sac it uses for nourishment for the first 4 or 5 days.

Illustrations by Jane Thomas, Integration and Application Network, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (ian.umces.edu/imagelibrary/)
 
After the yolk sac is used up, the small fish is able to swim.

 
This is a picture of a juvenile striped bass.

 
The young fish will eat small zooplankton including shrimp, water fleas, and copepods.
 
These pictures are greatly magnified so you can see details. If shown actual size, they would be as small as this “x” or smaller.

 
Does the picture above look familiar? Plankton on Sponge Bob Square Pants is based off the real-life copepod.
 
Young fish often look much different than their adult selves.