Distribution and migration of adult striped bass in Lake Whitney, Texas

Thirty adult (3.2a??8.6 kg) striped bass Morone saxatilis were tagged with ultrasonic transmitters and tracked for up to 475 d in 9,510-hectare Lake Whitney, a Texas reservoir, to determine seasonal distribution, migration patterns, and water temperatures occupied. Striped bass distribution in summer was limited to an area near the dam, where they survived temperatures as high as 29.0A?C. Tagged fish generally were found in the coolest water available (27.0a??29.0A?C) that contained adequate dissolved oxygen (>4.0 mg/L) in summer and occupied the warmest water (7.4a??8.8A?C) in winter. For the rest of the year, the fish were distributed throughout available water temperatures. Beginning in autumn, most striped bass moved up the reservoir to and into the main tributaries and remained there until spring, when they returned to the main reservoir. No spawning run up main tributaries was observed in either of the two study years, possibly due to low inflows. Individual fish displayed a preference for certain areas to which they returned yearly.