Ten months ago James Bramlett of Dora Alabama stood the fishing world on end when he landed a Striped Bass that weighed 69 pounds 9 ounces shattering the Alabama state record by 15 pounds that had stood since 1959. The monster striper was later awarded the IGFA World Record for a landlocked striped bass. That record stood since 1992.
News of the catch and broken records spread literally across the world. Michael Bothner, Scientist Emeritus at the U.S. Geological Survey was curious about mercury levels in a fish that size. He called Bramlett and taxidermist Jackie Scott to get tissue samples to test.
Bothner send me the test results and this is what they showed:
The average mercury concentration among three samples of muscle tissue was 1.02 ± 0.12 micrograms of mercury per gram of wet tissue, or parts per million (ppm). This concentration is 3.4 times higher than the 0.3 ppm threshold set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that triggers consumption advisories. The Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) advises that fish having concentrations between 0.48 and 0.97 ppm should be consumed at a frequency limited to one meal per month. Fish having mercury higher than 0.97 ppm are in the "no consumption" category.
Should fisherman in the state of Alabama be concerned about the elevated mercury concentration in this fish?
Bothner sent the results to John Guarisco, at the Alabama Department of Public Health. I called and talked with Guarisco about the findings because he is the person that compiles the Alabama Fish Consumption Advisories every year.
Guarisco confirmed the ADPH uses the EPA guidelines of 0.3 ppm of Mercury and went on to clarify their "meals per month" levels. "If mercury levels are between 0.32 and 0.48 ppm, our recommendation is no more than 2 meals per month," he explained. "Mercury levels from 0.48 to 0.97 we recommend consuming one meal per month."
"I'm not surprised that a fish of that size and age had an elevated mercury concentration," Guarisco said. "That is a huge fish, almost 70 pounds! He has been eating in those waters for over 20 years. It's well known that big fish have more mercury than small young fish."
Guarisco explained that mercury is an element and it can't be destroyed. It hangs around and gets in the sediment. Acidic water reacts with the mercury. Small bugs eat from the sediment and are eaten by bigger bugs. Baitfish like shad, a striper's favorite food, eats the bugs and the striper eats the shad, lots and lots of shad. It reminds me of the old saying "You are what you eat".
I asked Guarisco if there is a fish consumption advisory on that stretch of the Black Warrior River. "No, there is no advisory," Guarisco stated. "We have no supporting data to cause concern at this time."
I called ADEM, Alabama Department of Environmental Management, to get the latest fish tissue samples. This section of the Black Warrior River where the world record striper was caught has just been sampled 2-3 months before in the fall of 2012. Scott Hughes at ADEM explained how they take the samples and sent me their report that, in some cases was broken down to specific fish, their weight, length and toxin report.
I noticed that no striped bass were included in the sample. "We do as good a job sampling as many fish as possible with the resources we have," Hughes explained. Basically the team catches what they can and samples everything they catch. "We sample the top of the food chain, larger fish," Hughes continued.
I saw largemouth bass, spotted bass and catfish of several varieties in the samples taken in 2012 at several locations on the Black Warrior River. No stripers were caught so they couldn't be sampled.
Nelson Brooke, a spokesman with Black Warrior Riverkeepers also received the mercury report. He was familiar with it but had not analyzed it thoroughly yet. He wouldn't comment specifically on this fish but did say he has concerns about the way ADEM conducts their sampling and worries about "hotspots", or fish that have higher mercury levels that are missed by ADEM's sample. ADEM's Scott Hughes stated they do what can with the resources they have.
Another of Brooke's concerns is the number of sustenance fisherman that eat several times the state average fish consumption. "These fisherman fish to eat and eat whatever they catch," Brooke explained. "They eat a variety of fish from big cats to buffalo, carp, suckers and bass. I worry about people getting too many toxins in their systems."
One thing that Brooke, Hughes and Guarisco do agree on is this. Don't eat really large fish. Catch and release the big ones and eat the smaller ones. "Guarisco went on to say, "Don't be afraid to eat fish caught in Alabama waters. Eat the smaller fish or small portions of the larger ones. If you catch a big one invite friends and family over so everyone has a portion."
In conclusion, everyone that saw the mercury report on the world record striper agreed that the size of the fish and its age contributed to the elevated mercury levels. Also the fish was not eaten. Jackie Scott mounted the fish for James Bramlett. Photos of the mounted world record striped bass can be seen in the photo gallery above.
If you plan on eating fish from Alabama waters, here is a link to the ADPH Fish Brochure.
Here are links for stories about the IGFA World record striped bass caught by James Bramlett.