I need to clarify my statement about bass spawning vs buck brush...no the bass don't spawn on the buck brush...they do spawn near it and around it. The major impact of loosing the buck brush is that is provides nutrients and cover for the newly hatched bass. Leaving the water levels up for the extended period would not allow for the buck brush seeds to germinate (grass either for that matter) and thus cause the loss of shoreline vegatation.

If you want to read about all this you can read the TVA's indepth final report from the ROS Study done when the current ROS was implemented at:
http://www.tva.gov/environment/repor..._eis/index.htm