I asked last winter about these cool fish and got a little information but yesterday when I got my Jones Fish Hathery catalog, ( Cinci Ohio based largest regional supplier ) they are now offereing 8-15" Paddlefish for $30 each. Available in Sept and October only. I think these fellows would be cool in a pond but since not much info is available on them, I m not sure I want to spring for a couple of these guys. Any thoughts?? I might add that there catalog is really nice, total pond porn!!100 pages of full glossy magazine quality photos loaded with a lot of good info. Oh yeah, I am curious how they are available for retail sales when they are listed as "Endangered" in Ohio and must be quickly released when caught??? Must be a loophole there somewhere.

Salmonid

HI Mark,

Paddlefish are really cool. Another two species that would be fun are Burbot and Sturgeon.

I am not sure how any of these would fare in a pond, but if someone really worked it out and did it right...

Usually, an Aquaculture Facility can raise endangered species.

In Michigan, as I would guess in other states, is a permitting process and a lot of protocol to follow. The DNR's are more than happy to glean the rewards of the hard work someone else put in. They get a cut, be it information, or something to stock, not to mention the permit and license fees. Either way it is a win-win for the producer and the state.

I have seen 4" Tiger Muskie go for 50.00-75.00 each plus shipping.

That is a Niche market.

Getting into a high dollar species, one would want to be sure and secure, in a Pond environment, that it would work.

I would add more info. on how to obtain an endangered fish species (Totally Legal) in MI based on a particular exemption, then I would get Moderated, or, even worse

Read the OH regs, often times private enclosed ponds are exempt from many restrictions and rules that open private ponds or public waters must adhere to. Paddlefish can do well in a moderate to larger size pond if there is enough food source available to them. If you wanted to add one of two as a conversation piece thoroughly research the laws and then possible implications of them being in your pond. Paddlefish feed mostly on zooplankton, the same food many young game fish feed on so keep that in mind. They need large flowing rivers to spawn, so them spawning in a pond is not going to happen.

I think adding paddlefish would be very cool. I have only seen them offered by jones, does anybody know where else you could find them for sale close to michigan?

No one in MI offers them. Check with Jones or someone else to see what your options are.

I know you will have paperwork to bring them in from another state, and the buyer/supplier will have to get a NEW (un-circulated) permit to cross state lines. New entry permits:

http://www.michiganaquaculture.com/Entry%20Permits.htm

Paddlefish are really cool.

The entry permit is not just for aquaculture facilities, they don't update the info on a regular basis, as you can tell.

Good Luck!

Thanks for the info jkb

I have seen pellet trained paddle fish. It is neat to watch them eat pellets - the fish almost inverts to eat a pellet on the surface. Those from aquaculture could be pellet trained - ask questions before buying.

Pellet trained paddlefish would be a more feasible addition to a pond. They would feed less on the zooplankton community. I could see aquaculture attempting to pellet train paddlefish as the caviar from them is big business so finding an economical way to feed them would be important. Any ideas on sources for the pellet trained paddlefish Bill?

I might consider substituting sturgeon. Very similar, easier to obtain, feed and care for. They are distant cousins. But paddlefish much prefer moving water with heavy plankton as they are seiners. They just pull out food almost like a shad. Filtering thorugh rakers/gills. Sturgeon going to clean that bottom and can thrive in ponds. Best fish I have ever eaten is smoked sturgeon. Both species are incresingly being farm raised for caviar as the Caspian is being raped.

I was wanting to add a few paddlefish, not in mass amounts, we have an old pond 40 yrs old so I am sure a few should have enough food. They seem to grow quick & would very fun to watch swim by while in the canoe! Sturgeon for what I know, grow very slow, & you would never see them, by the time they are very big i still could not see them because i would so old! lol I never seen sturgeon for sale in or near MI?

I think you can get lake sturgeon out of WI. There website is being reconstructed so it is a lack of info. at the moment.

Another guy in MI was registered for Sturgeon but don't know if he actually has any.

I'll shoot out a few emails tomorrow and see if I can't locate any, also with the Paddlefish. If, and when I get a reply, I'll post it here.

Thanks JKB

I'm not so sure paddlefish prefer moving water. Paddle fish do grow in large rivers. But generally, zooplankton populations are much greater and comprised of larger species in standing water than moving water (rivers). Paddlefish do well in lakes with ample zooplankton. Paddlefish prefer the larger species of zooplankton. Farms that sell paddlefish could get them form aquaculture facilities that fed them pellets - ask about this when checking on paddlefish.

Paddlefish need moving water to spawn... Other than that, they tend to stay in the backwaters of rivers, oxbow lakes and other slow moving/non-moving waters connected to rivers.

Just keep this in mind, if considering sturgeon, particularly lake and more northern river sturgeon... They require water qualities similar to trout. If your pond won't support trout or come darn near close to it, it probably won't support sturgeon.

CJBS Is the water quality for sturgeon a temperature thing (cool water) or a DO, turbidity or other things?

From what I have read, it's a combination. The Brits are real big on keeping sturgeon in ponds with koi. They have some excellent information on keeping sturgeon. http://www.sturgeon-web.co.uk/ Is the best site I have found. Even the more adaptable sterlets which are basically miniature sturgeon require water qualities close to trout. I think they may be a hair bit more temp tolerant but the DO had better be near saturation...

If I had a larger pond over say 2 acres in a more northern climate, I think keeping a sturgeon or two would be very interesting. They even have albino varieties in the UK. I doubt you'd be allowed to import European species into the States, but a 4 ft diamond sturgeon with it awesome coloration or a 3 foot albino sterlet would be very cool...

I looked a lot.

States that produce Paddelfish are:

Georgia (only two fish for breeding)

Illinois (no data on who they are)

Kentucky (no data """)

Missouri (no data """)

Ohio, No data, but Jone's might have them.

Tennessee (do data """)

Minnesota, http://www.mckenzieco.com/fish.html

I also looked into the aquarium ind. Might want to steer clear of that.

Paddelfish are classified as Extirpated from the waters of MI. Meaning, that there are no known occurrences of there presence in MI. If they do occur, they are instantly a protected species. You can however import Paddelfish into MI for pond stocking or Aquacultural purposes without going through miles of carbon paper.

Paddelfish, like Lake Sturgeon and Arctic Charr would probably slip through kinda easily, without you being on a high fiber diet

Paddlefish need moving water to breed, but not really to live. White sturgeon can handle some less than top quality water, even brackish, such as koi ponds. They have made it in some real backwaters out here, even creeks and sloughs. We had a bad drought and these poachers came in and snagged most of them trapped in river ponds, as the river went dry everywhere. Both are huge now for caviar, the farms are growing daily. Would have to beleive sturgeon will be the number one farm fish in Cal real soon if it is not already. The farms are going pure food fish, dropping the pond stocking business. I just think you could get sturgeon easier than apddlefish, and like it was said, the Brits have really refined this. Just catching on here.

Here's some info on the 3 species of Sturgeon found in NY.
http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7025.html

Better take a long look at that Brit site and what they say about Paddlefish.

I think the problems related to keeping paddlefish would be solved if the fish were pellet trained. If the fish are pellet trained, you won't need the large amounts of zooplankton you would otherwise need.

Osage Catfisheries out of Missouri have a stocking program for pond owners. I emailed them yesterday and they were quick to respond. Steven recommends stocking them in the 18-22" range for their ranching program. As for water quality, I was told that paddlefish need a good bloom so what one would do to improve water quality for an all-around fishery would be fine. Steven Kahrs is the POC at Osage and his contact details are below -

Steven Kahrs
Osage Catfisheries,Inc. USA
office 573-348-2305
fax 573-348-1895
fishery@usmo.com

Apparently pond paddlefish are actually a reasonable thing.

http://web.extension.illinois.edu/smallfarm/pdf/oursare/paddlefish_poaching.pdf

Has anyone purchased some paddlefish near Michigan?

We have stocked paddlefish into a number of ponds and lakes with no problems reported so far. We also produce paddlefish on commercial scale for aquaculture or stock enhancement. Usually we can offer fish from 0.3 to ten pounds. Please contact me for more information.
Tim Parrott
Aquila Int'l, Inc.
tparrott@aquila-inc.com

Does anyone have a reference for the minimum pond size that will support healthy paddlefish. My pond is a bit over an acre with a maximum depth of over 10 feet. I do not aerate, feed, or fertilize, but have never seen a dead fish in the pond since building and stocking it with BG, LMB, & CC in the fall of 2004. Only a few BG have been removed by fishing.

Well, I ordered some paddlefish from Jones Fish Hatcher to be delivered this fall. I hope that they survive, cause they are pricey.

How much were they?

$30 per 8-14" fish

I hope more at leaning towards 14" or you have mostly small bass...

I just found a supplier for 18"-30" (or up to 50 lbs) paddle fish. I don't know how much interest there would be in them though. Still waiting on final pricing, but should be much less than the ~$3 per inch that has been described here. 18" minimum would avoid predation fears also unless you had some 20lb Blue Cats in there.

Would many people be interested?

They feed exlusively on zooplankton and gather pytoplankton incidentally. They should be a good way to reduce some over abundant fertility without causing any harm to the base of the food chain.

Transportation will be fun to figure out since their gills do not articulate. I would need to devise a way to create a moderate flow in the tanks.

I hope my bass do not eat them up. I am guessing that Jones Fish Hatchery would not bring me expensive forage fish. I am actually more worried about the channel cats. I have some 2'+ ones in the pond.

Rah, at that size with 24" Cats, they will likely be high priced snacks at 14" and less. Paddlefish are very docile and constantly moving slowly in order to breath/feed. The long fusiform body makes them easy prey for anything that has the gape to get it in it's mouth.

Rex, I don't think a CC that is 24" has the gape to get one down. What's the dia of a paddlefish that is 12"-14" long?

I'm not sure Scott. The grower I talked to said they don't add much girth till they hit a length of 17-18 inches...I envision the smaller ones being similar to a walleye in shape.

FYI- In Oklahoma there is a very active paddlefish fishery in a number of rivers. It is especially prolific in Grand Lake in NE Okla. The tributaries of Grand Lake are the Neosho and Grand Rivers. Paddlefish are normally harvested by snagging in the spring when they run up river to spawn. Snagging is prohibited in the Grand
River but permitted in the Neosho. There is a daily limit of 1 paddlefish per day, which is the most generous in the country I believe. I have taken a 40 lb paddlefish myself 2 years ago. It was a female and I made caviar and ate the flesh. Both were superb. The flesh is like other cartilaginous fish I have eaten such as sturgeon and shark insofar as the muscle fibers are interlaced so that the meat does not flake like, say, cod fish or grouper. The federal fisheries guys raise them and have been stocking in several tailwaters including Texoma. Since they are native to the great plains rivers they must like running water but in Grand Lake they reside all year long in the lake itself and only are in the rivers in numbers during the spawning run.

I sent Jones Fish Hatchery a note and they did not think the bass and CC were a problem as long as there were plenty of minnows. I can see minnow-sized fish near the edges, so I guess I'll give it a try.

I hope they work well and look forward to hearing future reports about them.

Couple years ago I purchased Qty 100 paddlefish from a very well qualified aquaculture producer near Lexington KY. I purchased 10"-12" juveniles for $10 each and have successfully used as part of a polyculture trial in my operation. This same producer spawns and raises these fish every year. Many are sold/distributed to research. If available, he sells surplus stock to fish farmers and private buyers... and at what I believe to be fair price. Edit 7/25/15. Kentucky producer does have surplus paddlefish to sell this August and September. He will answer questions and mentor if asked - very nice guy. He will sell 20-30 same size and price (good long-term stocking # for most one acre ponds), or much larger quantities if you're fortunate to have larger and/or "fertile" waters to support higher population nutrition.

I saw an ad on Indianapolis Craigslist under farm for pellet trained paddlefish for sale out of Frankfort KY.Looks to be the same farm!I would like to have some paddlefish at some point but I am not sure that my pond is fertile enough yet.