Whats the main risk to striped bass and walleye in the lake?
A wet spring. “What we need is normal rainfall,” Kinman said. “If the lake level has to be continually pulled (lowered) to maintain elevation 680, all the cold water (stored over the winter) could be discharged from the lake.” Kinman said the water exchange occurs in April and May, but the danger of a fish kill comes later — in the summer and early fall. Stripers need water no higher than 68 degrees (Fahrenheit), walleye 73 degrees. “They need water in this temperature range, which has the proper levels of dissolved oxygen,” said Kinman. Large adult striped bass and walleye are especially vulnerable because they will stay in water at their preferred temperature, even if it doesn’t have the oxygen they need. The result is asphyxiation. “Striped bass kills are not uncommon,” Kinman said. “We had that problem with striped bass in Herrington Lake in the 1970s, and two years ago there was a walleye fish kill in the lower lake (Lake Cumberland).” Is the drawdown going to affect trout produc
