Thanks Tracy.
Predatory fish grow better when they have a more diversified forage base. Yes, both (or should I say all 3?) of those minnow species do well in northern climates. Their temp tolerance is listed in the links. Yes, the shrimp are another option that I forgot about. Thanks!
Here is the information on each species:
Bluntnose Minnow Spotfin Shiner Spottail Shiner Cody Note- This info is from member CJBS:
I stocked a few hundred spottail shiners into a 0.34 acre mostly mud/detritus bottomed pond. They're very easy to capture in volume when they make their spring spawning runs in the local rivers. I never had any sign of them reproducing. I've also stocked them into other ponds up to 4 acres in size with no signs of reproduction. The 0.34 acre pond I've studied very closely. The shiners can survive, as large adults do show up in seine surveys and minnow traps. Apparently their spawning requirements aren't met by most ponds.
The species I've focused on is the eastern silvery minnow. It sometimes shows up mixed in with the spottail shiners during their spring spawning runs but in lower numbers. It spawns very differently though. I have had two excellent back to back spawns the past two springs in the 0.34 acre pond. I really like this species as it gets larger than most, commonly to 5" and it spawns very early in the season and is quite prolific. They were studied as a food source for Esox species YOY in hatcheries because of these attributes. Now that both HSB and SMB have been stocked into the pond, I'll be seeing how they hold up to predation.
Eastern silvery minnows have several close relatives found throughout North America that may also be good pond forage candidates.