Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Evaluating and adjusting fish populations tilapia and algea

It depends a lot on how big the predators are in the pond. The bigger mouths the predators have the larger the tilapia should be so they are less likely to become lunch for bass, etc. Stocking small tilapia of 4"-6" in a pond with larger bass of 15"-17" is not wise unless your pockets are deep. Plus you want larger stocker size so they spawn ASAP after stocking. Some females will be ready to spawn or will be brooding fry when stocked. Large stocker tilapia can be 12"-13" long and weigh 1.3 to 1.6 lbs each for waters with 20" bass. Common wise stocker size is 6"-9" (0.2-0.65 lb). Often tilapia weigh slightly more than a BG-RES for the same length.