Species › North America · Freshwater › Hybrid / Landlocked Striped Bass

Freshwater

Hybrid / Landlocked Striped Bass

Morone saxatilis × Morone chrysops · Wiper, Whiterock bass, Sunshine bass

Water temp
61–72°F
Peak season
Mar–May, Oct–Nov
Best light
Low light
IGFA record
27 lb 5 oz (12.39 kg)
Hybrid / Landlocked Striped Bass (Streifenbarsch.jpg)

Photo: Haplochromis · CC0 · via Wikimedia Commons

OverviewWhere & WhenHow to CatchGearRegulationsRecordsForecastCatches

Overview

Hybrid striped bass combine the deep body and broken, offset stripes of a white bass with the size and stamina of a striper, usually showing a stocky profile, two tooth patches on the tongue and stripes that break and stagger below the lateral line. They are sterile and must be stocked, but reach 10–15 lb in a few years and have been introduced to warm reservoirs from Nebraska to Georgia and Texas. Landlocked striped bass are pure stripers raised entirely in freshwater, with straight, unbroken stripes and the potential to exceed 50 lb in reservoirs like Lake Texoma and Lake Cumberland.

Both fish roam open water in schools, herding shad against points, humps and dam faces and erupting on the surface at dawn and dusk, then dropping to the thermocline through the heat of summer. They tolerate warmer water than pure stripers, which is why hybrids are the fish of choice for southern and plains reservoirs. Anglers find them with sonar and birds, then throw topwaters, swimbaits and spoons or drift live shad, and a 10 lb hybrid on bass tackle will test every knot.

Typical size2–8 lb (1–3.6 kg); 16–24 in (hybrids); 5–15 lb landlocked stripers
Trophy15 lb+ hybrid; 30 lb+ landlocked striper
Table fareGood — firm white meat; remove the red lateral strip

Where & when

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Spring (March–May) brings a false spawning run up rivers and into tailwaters, fall (October–November) brings surface schooling on shad, and the two bites bracket a summer of deep-water fishing in the thermocline; southern reservoirs stay active all winter.

Lake Texoma, TXSelf-sustaining striper fishery and big hybrids; year-round guidesGreers Ferry Lake, ARHome of the hybrid world record; clear water and deep trollingLake Cumberland, KYTrophy landlocked stripers to 50 lb in deep, clear waterMilford Lake, KSThe plains' premier wiper lake; surface schools in fall

How to catch

Live shad on free lines and planer boardsNet gizzard or threadfin shad, hook them through the nose on a 2/0–4/0 circle hook and drift or slow-troll them on free lines, planer boards and downlines at the depth sonar shows the fish. This is the guide method on Texoma and Cumberland and catches the largest fish.
Topwater and swimbaits on schooling fishAt dawn and dusk, watch for gulls and surface boils over points and humps, then cast walking baits, poppers or 4–6 inch paddle-tail swimbaits into the school and retrieve fast. Keep the boat off the school and use the trolling motor to follow it.
Vertical jigging spoonsWhen fish hold deep in summer and winter, drop a 3/4–1.5 oz jigging spoon or blade bait to the marked school and rip it up two to three feet, letting it flutter back. Hybrids hit on the fall; a sensitive braid and a firm hookset matter.
Tailwater fishingBelow dams in spring and during generation, cast heavy jigs, swimbaits and bucktails into the boils and current seams or drift live shad through them. Fish stack in the oxygenated flow and strikes are savage.

Gear

Rod7' medium-heavy spinning or casting, fast action
Reel4000 spinning or 300-size baitcaster
Line20–30 lb braid with a 15–20 lb fluorocarbon leader; 15–20 lb mono for live bait

Lures

Paddle-tail swimbaitsWalking topwaters and pencil poppersJigging spoonsBlade baitsBucktail jigs

Baits

Live gizzard or threadfin shadLive shinersCut shadChicken liver (hybrids)

Regulations

A freshwater license is required. Most states set a combined daily limit for striped bass, hybrids and white bass with a minimum length, sometimes allowing only a couple of fish over a set size, and some reservoirs have special limits; check the lake-specific rules.

Records

IGFA all-tackle world record: 27 lb 5 oz (12.39 kg) — Hybrid (whiterock bass): Greers Ferry Lake, Arkansas, 1997 (Jerald C. Shaum). Landlocked striped bass: 69 lb 9 oz, Black Warrior River, Alabama, 2013 (James Bramlett). State and regional records are kept by each fish & wildlife agency.

Frequently asked

How do you tell a hybrid striped bass from a striped bass or white bass?

Hybrids have stripes that are broken and offset below the lateral line and a deeper body than a striper, plus two distinct tooth patches on the tongue. Pure striped bass have straight, unbroken stripes and a long, sleek body; white bass have a single tooth patch, faint stripes and rarely top 3 lb. Many states count all three toward one bag limit anyway.

What is the best time of day to catch hybrids and landlocked stripers?

The first hour of light and the last hour before dark, when schools push shad to the surface over points and humps. In summer, a night bite under bridge lights and over deep humps often beats daytime. Cloudy, windy days extend the surface action into midday.

Bite forecast — Hybrid / Landlocked Striped Bass

Recent catches

Posted by anglers on the live map, filtered to Hybrid / Landlocked Striped Bass.

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