Stunted growth has very little to do with unequal fish classes. Stunting happens when there is an over population or not enough water volume per fish size in lakes/ponds/aquariums. It happens with bass when too many smaller fish reproduce to keep adding more and more small fish. Stripers are put and take managed. There is no way the smaller classes can over power the larger classes because there is little or no natural reproduction. The bait fish population will explode to disastrous proportions if stripers aren't there to help manage them as they are the only true open water fish in the lake. If we think the striper die off is bad, just let there Alewives explode to a point where the lake can't feed them and they go through a mass die off. The chain reaction would make Cumberland literally the dead sea.

The largemouth quality dropped in direct proportion with the continually reduced fertilization in Cumberland and nothing more. As trees and cover went away, so did the cover for largemouth and the fertilization. It had nothing at all to do with stripers in any way shape or form. Largemouth will make a short come back in Cumberland. I have bass fishing friends who had their best days ever on Cumberland largemouth fishing this spring and it will only get better. But when the lake is back to normal, the added cover and firtle water will once again vanish. The smallies will return to shallower water as hogs and the Ky's will be better than ever. And the stipers will be close by in open water.