Any one with a pond in or around north east florida that would want to stock a southern flounder or two let me know. I have acclimated to fresh water but have decided I want to wait and let my other fish grow a bit before I stock anything this size. They are about 12-13 inches long so would be able to stock in mature pond.

You had better be documenting all that you are doing. It would make a fantastic article for the PB Magazine!

No kidding Esshup!

Bobby how does one turn a salt water fish to a fresh water fish? How is this possible?

Certain fish have this internal ability, Salmon is a prime exaple. King salmon live in the pacific ocean, Yet you can catch all you want in lake Michigan. Its usually part of the life cycle to be in fresh water at some stage of life, but if land locked they can not get to the salty water and just eat and grow. They can not complete the life cylce and reproduce as they need the salt water for that. So they will be like HSB, put and take.....lots of coastal fish have this ability but seems to not have been explored very much. little differant than salmon, they hatch in salt water migrate to brackish and fresh water estuaries as juviniles and once mature move out to larger more salty water again. In the St johns river certain salt water fish (even adults) can be found all the way down to orlando area around the head water of the river.

see the salinity tolerance range on the southern flounder here. 0- 35 ‰
http://www.sms.si.edu/IRLSpec/Parali_lethos.htm

I caught many of them in the Apalachicola area. However I was not aware that the Flounder could live permantly in fresh water.

The biggest issue faced, is most all saltwater fish cannot tolerate cold water. In the ocean, the migrate north for the summer but when temps begin to fall they head back south. If confined to a pond, they cannot migrate back south and die. Bobby lives in FL, so his pond stays warm year round...

Some species have juveniles which are more tolerant of low or no salinities, but adults need salinities closer to oceanic water. This may be a biological thing, allowing smaller juveniles to ascend rivers where predators may not be quite so big and abundant while the adults don't need this as they are larger. Last weekend they were catching red drum in the Potomac River within view of the Washington and Jefferson Monuments. Salinity levels there are nearly pure freshwater.

remember this flounder...

it is now living in the little pond at my wifes work. It has become a pet flounder and is the same one from the video from another thread when it was eating a blue gill. 1.5 years in the fresh water pond eating blue gills and looks fat and healthy. It is at least 24-28 inches and really thick looking too ..
"hard to tell from a distance".

Just thought I would update this ...

Yeah I remember this flounder! Glad it's growing well. How's your forage base doing?

in the main pond I manage it seems to be doing well, lots of different sized tilapia and BG. I keep adding shiners. Not sure if any recruitment. Stupid Gams eat all the eggs of any thing that are not bed protectors.

in the little pond this flounder is in , well its loaded down with CNBG. Lots of size classes. Were pretty stunted. Wife started feeding them cheap catfish pellets and I think the flounder has thinned them a tad. But lots and lots of BG for it to eat...Its fat and happy so far...

How'd you catch it to move it? hook and line?

Yep, Thought about eating eating it but realeased it......

FYI on Michigan King (Chinook) Salmon life cycle. They spend their entire life in fresh water and there is significant reproduction without ever heading out to sea. Suggested that recent surveys had wild spawn at 50% of the population.


Michigan Sea Grant has quite a few cool videos.



From MI Sea Grant about the above video.
This raw underwater video footage was taken in the South Branch of the Black River in Van Buren County, Michigan. The water was cloudy from early October rains and Chinook salmon were preparing to spawn.

The first fish in the video is a male. The female, or hen, seen later in the video is preparing her redd by fanning her tail to clean fine particles of sand and silt from the gravel and cobble where she will deposit and bury her eggs. The flow of the current through the clean gravel will keep her eggs aerated through the winter months.

They don't get as big as their sea run cousins, but a 40lb King is a blast to catch.

Interesting, I thought they stocked all of the salmom. I wonder why they dont get as big though...

Not as much food... Very few if any fish that is a normally ocean run fish, when placed in a lake run environment grows as big. Trout such as brown and brook, may be an exception. However, salmon, striped bass and even forage fish like alewife and blueback herring all grow to smaller sizes when lake run as compared to sea run.

I am thinking I might have the same happen with my salt run fish in the freshwater pond. However, that might be a good thing...Dont really need fish over 30 pounds in a half acre pond....Maybe.........

Not without aeration and some serious management efforts.

Assuming you mean managing the forage base so they have planty to eat, this has been my focus and major concern.

Aeration...
Are you concerned might have a kill or just lower oxygen in a small warm pond might limit growth potential?

other thought I had was winter temps, even if the temps dont get below leathal temps I think they get colder than they would stay in during the natural range and slow or stop them from feeding for about 2 months, Jan - Feb, that could limit or slow growth some too.......?

I'm concerned about a low DO fish kill...

just an update on the freshwater "pet Flounder"

it is at the end of its third summer chowing down on CNBG and Tilapia. It has gotten to what we call door mat size.

Looks very fat and healthy after three years in the pure freshwater retention pond.

sorry for the glare, Best we cold do ...

Peacock flounder?

its a "Southern Flounder", a native fish to the eastern seaboard and Gulf of Mexico.

How long would you say he's gotten now?

Man its really hard to tell. I think I over estimated before. but easily over 20 inches but less than 30. I am standing up on a platform looking down at her in the water laying on the bottom. No way to catch her where she is because people in the office park will freak out with me messing with her now. People go down a look at her at lunch and on breaks.

she is really getting very thick and wide. She looks very well fed.

saw her today , she seems to still be doing well chowing down on tilapia and CNBG. every time I see erh she is a tad larger. Still looks very fat and healthy in the fresh water retention pond.

Bobby

That is bad ... Way cool to have that in fresh water . Hope it gets huge!

Pat W

Pat, Funny thing is it seems to be the most cold tolerant of all th fish I have messed around with so far. We had two nights in the high 20's and all the tilapia in the pond are laying down in the mud trying to stay warm. She was up actively feeding. I have caught them in shallow cold winter water actively feeding. I am wondering if they might tolerate a texas pond winter. You might try it out... Head out to the gulf and catch a few.

Bobby
Going to look into getting some. That would be another great predator to have in the pond as an equalizer to the bass


Pat W


Ps: any plans to add more flounder of opposite sex?

So that fish has matched the color of the sandy bottom and isn't partially buried? I knew they could do that but that is amazing!

I've caught them in the Atlantic off the coast of Maine so no surprise the fish is cold tolerant. One of the best tasting fish I have ever eaten.

Dude, everything about this is simply amazing - and ground breaking. What else can you do fishery wise? Let's try more species, build a fishery of fresh and salt water species.

Great photo Bobby, love what you've been doing. There's so much more than just bass and BG for a pond...