Hi-

I became part of a lake association around 3 years ago. Within the last year the association wants to begin stocking fish in the lake and I'm looking for suggestions on which would be more appropriate.

Lake breakdown..
45 acre sandpit located in SE Nebraska average depth is 10 ft and 25 max depth. Fairly clean water visibility is typically very good.

Abundance of 12-16 inch LMB very few large.
Crappie 10-14 inch range
Bluegill 7-9.5 inch range
White Perch 10-13 inches
large Carp
Bullhead 12-16 inch range
I'm sure there are some CC but haven't caught one.

Most of these species look well fed while angling. I will catch some pretty skinny LMB every time I'm out.


In the past they stocked walleye that seemed to have no reproduction. (this was back in the 80's so I'm assuming they have since deceased). They seemed to have done okay when they were in there as it seems every cabin has a decent one on their wall.

I'm really unsure of the overall goals of this lake and what the associations goals are. It seems like they just want to have the random novelty catch of a different species (pike, walley, smb, muskie, HSB) or something along those lines.

If this was any other lake I would be pulling out every bass less than 12 inches along with the crappie. However with this Pond I'm scared to remove anything in fear the White Perch will take over and ruin what we already have. It seems the LMB has them somewhat in check for the time being.

Do you have any suggestions. I'll be working with a 3000 budget yearly.

Thanks for the help!

The first year I'd call around and see if a company can electro shock the lake. That might blow the whole year's budget, but then you would have clear direction in what to do next. A BOW that large needs to have a definitive plan laid out.

Thanks for the reply.

I've sent an emails out to resident electro shocking company requesting pricing along with the removal of any white perch that are stunned.

If one were to suggest a species without any more information than I provided what would you recommend?

I know there are gizzard shad present in this lake as well.

Welcome to the forum from a fellow Nebraskan!

Esshup's right on in his suggestion to have an electro survey done of the lake. Need to find everything out before deciding the next steps. I believe in Lincoln, at Branched Oak, they use C&R only flatheads to control (or attempt to control) the white perch population. I could be wrong. But that obviously a much larger body of water. You don't want to do that. But possibly muskie, or tiger muskie, would be an option to consider. I just discussed these species this morning with a fellow Pond Bosser and Nebraskan for another NE pond in the Gretna area. They could be expensive, however, and may not be able to be bought at a size that would escape predation when first stocked. Removal of those mid-tier bass through angling would be a good place to start as well, as you are aware.

Of course, these are just things to consider after you get a good handle on what you have. I believe Shawn Banks has a very affordable electroshocking service he could provide for you.

Hi TB

I own ponds around Lincoln, welcome to the forum!

Presence of GS and WP should mean your predators have plenty of forage, although the WP are invasive and can destroy a fishery and the GS can dominate/overpopulate in a BOW your size and smaller - which is the obvious downside.

I would suggest thinking about introduction of some apex predators to help hammer your WP, GS and skinny LMB. Blue Cat [BC] love GS, WP and LMB. Wipers [HSB] also will hammer your GS and provide a great addition to your fishery. Tiger Muskie or Muskie could survive in your sandpit and may also have a function to serve.

One challenge you will face when stocking new species is the existence of LMB - you will need to stock larger fish in order to avoid immediate predation. You can do this by spending a lot on adult fish, or, grow small fish out in cages and release once they attain suitable size. The second method is used quite often by folks here on the forum and we can help guide you there.

If you want, feel free to contact me. I grew up on a sandpit alot like the one you're describing and am familiar with some of the challenges you are facing. I'm happy to help if you want to fire an email. tjhudson@pondboss.com

Glad to have you on board, and we're looking forward to helping you reach your goals!

TJ

With the GS in there, if the LMB aren't large enough to hammer them, they can become the dominant fish species (in regards to % of total biomass).

If the LMB are only small, then what's keeping them from growing larger?

If there aren't enough large predators to take advantage of the adult GS, then I'd strongly think about having the shock boat take out any that they see as well.

Any predators stocked might have the same problem as the current LMB, not having enough of the correct sized food to grow to their full potential.

There are other sandpits in E NE that use BC and HSB to help control their GS populations. With the mild winter we had I know the population will likely be high without the annual dieoff. I don't know that I've ever recommended stocking BC before, but I think this is a likely scenario where, after researching, might be a good candidate. Thankfully they are available in Lincoln pretty cheaply.

Thanks again for the replies.

Still waiting on a quote for the shocking. Any Idea what this may cost?
I will try and email Shawn as well. Thanks Omaha for the suggestion.

Honestly, I would love to see what is in there prior to stocking. I've been told there are gar in it as well.

All the gizzard shad I have seen have been very big.

As stated above by esshup... What is keeping the LMB small?

Everything else seems nice and fat for the most part.

In the summer time the bass and WP chase the baitfish around causing boils at the surface. I'm not sure if they are shad or what. Chasing and casting into the boils yeilds a WP or Bass almost every cast. I've only seen this with wiper. Is this indicative of a health forage base?

There are a few bass that push 19-20 inches and they have always been nice and plump.

This place is a wealth of knowledge.

TB

I owe Shawn a call, I'll talk to him and ask that he look for you. Electro surveying is not cheap, might wipe out your annual budget. If you have a sandpit near a NE river you likely have:

White perch
Gar
Buffalo
Carp
Channel cat
Flathead cat [maybe]
Gizzard shad
Bullhead
Drum
Crappie

Obviously plus whatever species are currently present in your fishery.

The fish you see being schooled upon are likely YOY [young of year] Gizzard Shad. Feel free to drop me an email if you want to chat.

tbfishing, get a hold of Jeff Blaser at the G & P, he is their dedicated private waters specialist and might be able to help you evaluate your lake (electroshock) and give you some solid advice on how to proceed. The G & P shock boat will likely be tied up until mid to late June with other projects, that's been my experience. I have been out on their shock boat a few times with him when we had an overabundance of small LMB and we needed waiver on the states size regulation with my dad's old pond.

jeff.blaser@ngpc.ne.gov

There might not be enough forage of the proper size in the BOW to allow the LMB to grow bigger.

Had a board meeting the other day and a shocking survey was approved. The board was concerned with die-off of shocked fish however. From my understanding the chances of fish dying is minimal. Can someone speak to this?

Also I owe the board information about who we will be choosing to do the shock survey. Shawn Banks was mentioned above. Any other suggestions for whom to contact about shocking? They decided to not pursue game and parks and would like this done through a private company.

Thanks

TJ-

Tried sending you an email and Private message...
The email got denied and your Message box is full.

Shoot me a PM if you can.