The sample I caught had a median length of 8 inches and a median of 125% RW. They are literally bigger by weight then the LMB in the pond.
This sounds like maybe the LMB didn't grow much. So a question I have would be how well did the BG recruit?
If I recall correctly you did a harvest > 30 lbs LMB. So if there wasn't a lot of BG fry produced last year, I might allow the BG to pull off a couple of spawns which second spawn will probably occur in the June time frame. Judge the LMB RW in July.
The condition where prey size is larger than predator is not uncommon. For those focusing on trophy sized BG, this is normal and encouraged. Where trophy sized BG are desired, one is reluctant to remove LMB and one certainly doesn't want to overharvest LMB. Its easier to manage for remarkable BG than to manage for remarkable LMB .... especially in a small pond of less than 1 acre.
Like last year, I have the Texas feeder set to once a day at 1s. Based on the size of the BG it appears to be working.
The feed is not required at all. Most of the growth was from pond organisms that serve as prey for the BG. There was no need to feed in a pond producing watermeal. It is fertile already, very eutrophic to produce large stands of watermeal. As long as you have a good population of LMB the BG will grow to remarkable sizes.
