Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, October 1, 1995                   TAG: 9510020028
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: C10   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

SMITH MOUNTAIN CHECKUP YIELDS GOOD AND BAD NEWS

CRAPPIE: This popular panfish, a delight to serious and casual fishermen, is on the rebound.

``Our samples were chock-full of crappie, just stunning numbers like we have not see in a long, long time,'' said Mike Duval, a state fisheries biologist supervisor.

Many of the crappie are young fish that are 6 to 7 inches long, which means they should provide sport beginning in the spring of 1996 and for several seasons to come.

The lake has been in dire need of a fish that can provide sport for the entire family mom, pop and kid's type of fish.

WALLEYE: Young of the year and yearling walleye have been showing up in the samples of biologists for the past two years. That means natural reproduction is taking place, because the state stopped stocking this species in 1992.

``It will be interesting to see where the natural reproduction goes,'' Duval said.

BLACK BASS: Reproduction appears to be good this season, as has been the case for the past several years. Some anglers have been reporting the largemouth fishing is the best since the early days of the lake. Bass tournaments have returned in earnest, and there is talk of bringing a national tournament to the lake.

GIZZARD SHAD: This is the meat-and-potatoes food fish for sport species in Smith Mountain, especially striped bass. The well-being of the striper population tends to reflect gizzard shad numbers.

Fish officials found about 80 pounds per acre of gizzard shad, which is average for the 1990s, but low compared with the early years of the impoundment.

``We are down at this very low level and there are no signs that things are going to spin around,'' said Duval. ``We won't have great gobs of gizzard shad coming back anytime soon.''

THREADFIN SHAD: The impressive numbers of baitfish anglers have been seeing treading across the surface of the lake recently are threadfin shad. The species was discovered in Smith Mountain in 1993. The 1995 hatch is the biggest yet.

Threadfin are smaller than gizzard shad and can spawn twice a year, factors that mean the species can be an excellent food source for young sport fish. Many of the shad are 1 1/2 inches in length or shorter, ideal size for the abundance of crappie and for young striped bass.

But there is a downside: When winters are cold, there can be massive threadfin die-offs. Last year's crop, for example, was slim.

``If we have several years of mild winters, they will be a definite benefit to the system,'' said Duval. ``But when they winter-kill, you are going to have a dry spell [in the food chain] until the next spawn. You can't count on them.''

STRIPED BASS: This year's striped bass stockings were disappointingly low, because of flooding at the state's Brookneal Hatchery. The stocking figures are about 235,000, significantly fewer than the planned stocking of 300,000.

On the positive side, survival of the fish stocked in 1992 was excellent, and that year's class should begin bowing rods with authority in the next several seasons. Aside from that, the striper fishing situation is lackluster.

FLATHEAD CATFISH: Here is a species that showed up in the lake a few years ago and continues to prosper. It is found mostly in the upper Roanoke and Blackwater river arms of the lake, where ``cats'' weighing better than 30 pounds are available.

While their numbers remain modest, their size has attracted a following among fishermen.

WHITE PERCH: Newer to the lake than the flathead is this panfish, a prolific species Duval expects to become abundant.

``They are in low numbers now, and it isn't the nature of white perch to be in low numbers,'' he said.

White perch don't get large, 8 to 10 inches or shorter, but they are popular when abundant. In Virginia, this member of the sea bass family is a fish of the Piedmont, and even can be found in brackish and saltwater.

``They will be food for some fish and predators for others,'' said Duval.

From a fisheries management viewpoint, Duval would just as soon the white perch weren't in Smith Mountain.

``It is easier to manage fewer species rather than a large number of species,'' he said.

WHITE BASS: Few are being found, and Duval doesn't expect that to change. They are more abundant in downstream Leesville Lake, so if you want to catch white bass, he suggests moving down one impoundment.