Lake Cumberland Stripes Monday Night

[apb]

Hybrids and Stripers both have 2 patches of teeth on their tongues: one up front, and one mid tongue. White Bass have just one patch. While it is more common for a Hybrid to have broken lines, a number of Stripers also have broken lines. I've caught them out of the surf with broken lines. I've also caught Hybrids in KY that had no broken lines. Stripers have a definite split in their dorsal fin making it two separate sections. On Hybrids, these are joined. Lastly, the shape of the two are different. Hybrids have a much thicker profile and a smaller mouth. Stripers are more torpedo shaped. Also, as several guys noted, no Hybrids in Cumberland. Don't want to sound like a broken record, but I hear the "caught several Hybrids at Cumberland" each year. Best to let folks know how to tell them apart before the game warden gives them a lesson on why not to keep short stripers at Cumberland!

Glad you got out and got into a few.

Andrew

[dcbasser]

Hybrids and Stripers both have 2 patches of teeth on their tongues: one up front, and one mid tongue. White Bass have just one patch. While it is more common for a Hybrid to have broken lines, a number of Stripers also have broken lines. I've caught them out of the surf with broken lines. I've also caught Hybrids in KY that had no broken lines. Stripers have a definite split in their dorsal fin making it two separate sections. On Hybrids, these are joined. Lastly, the shape of the two are different. Hybrids have a much thicker profile and a smaller mouth. Stripers are more torpedo shaped. Also, as several guys noted, no Hybrids in Cumberland. Don't want to sound like a broken record, but I hear the "caught several Hybrids at Cumberland" each year. Best to let folks know how to tell them apart before the game warden gives them a lesson on why not to keep short stripers at Cumberland!

Glad you got out and got into a few.

Andrew

thanks for the replies guys. we weren't sure so again we went by the safe route if it wasn't 24 inches we didn't keep them and went by the regular striper guidelines. better safe than sorry and costing money that i could use to pay for gas lol. it is amazing though how many people don't know the difference though. even i wasn't really sure.

[Mean Morone]

Yes it is better to be safe than sorry. I saw a picture of a 30 lb striper on another site that had every line broken. I was interested in this fish and emailed the well known guide that was responsible for catching it. He told me that he contacted the state (TN) and asked about the chance that this was a hybrid. It wasn't considered a hybrid because even though it did have some white bass blood in it, it wasn't enough to qualify it as a true hybrid. I don't know if I buy it. There are no 30 lb hybrids, at least not yet.

I hope Lake Cumberland does not resort to hybrids. Hybrids are getting more common. Stripers are not.

[Duayne]

Better safe than sorry is always the best practice! As many have said, broken lines are very common with stripers. It is WHICH lines are broken that matters and as APB said, that is even stretchy. I look at the dorsals and body shape

Whites: dorsals together
Hybrids: dorsals slightly separated
Stripers: dorsals have a distinguishable gap

On many bodies of water they lump stripers, hybrids and even whites all together so anglers will not have to make the call.