Pond Boss
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Albino channel catfish - 03/12/16 10:02 PM
I would like to find about 10 to 12 five to eight inch Albino CC to put in my pond. The fish truck came today and had zero. Where would I find a small number of these? Maybe have them shipped? Thanks?
Posted By: esshup Re: Albino channel catfish - 03/12/16 10:43 PM
John, it would most likely be less expensive for you to call around to the fish hatcheries in Arkansas and drive to pick them up. Catfish don't ship very well. Their spines tend to puncture plastic bags, and they don't survive for very long without water.

There are probably well over 100 hatcheries in Arkansas, and I'd be willing to bet that a number of them have albinos.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 03/12/16 11:08 PM
The Lonoke hatcheries are about 3.5 hours to drive. Would they survive OK, maybe 3 to 4 to a bag? I only know of 4 hatceries that have CC. Is there a list somewhere of most of them?
Posted By: Rainman Re: Albino channel catfish - 03/13/16 01:58 AM
John, I'm not aware of any AR hatchery breeding for albino's. They normally get a few, but never a lot.

Try Hopper-Stephens, JM Malone and Son's, or Farm Cat...all in Lonoke.

5-8" CC will travel fine if double bagged, and could travel in 1-2 bags.
Posted By: Zep Re: Albino channel catfish - 03/13/16 02:01 AM
The guy that brought in my Albino Cats got them in Arkansas, but I'm not sure of the exact hatchery.

I would call some of the Ark hatcheries...one of them will be able to get them for you, but most may not be too excited about such a small quantity. I assume albinos are very prone to predation so maybe get a few more.

Or you could try this if nobody local can help you.

Albino Channel Cats on e-Bay
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/08/16 09:56 PM
I have found, after researching extensively, that no hatchery in Arkansas is currently offering Albino CC. Occasionally they will find a few, but don't pick them out for sale. They all quit breeding them because it became unprofitable due to predation by cormorants.

I wish cormorants would become so rare they would be put on the endangered list.

I found a guy in Ohio who is now breeding them, but a box of a dozen 6 to 8 inch ones is $90.50 shipped by air. Going to keep searching until I find a few within two hour drive. I only want about 10-12 of them, and afraid that air shipping would result only in dead catfish.
Posted By: Rainman Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/08/16 10:49 PM
John, I ship via FedEx overnight and same day air freight quite often...it is a very reliable way to get fish. Did you try Arkansas Pondstockers and Farmcat, in AR?

Osage Catfish farm in Missouri near Lake Ozark used to have albinos...not sure if they do anymore.
Posted By: esshup Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/08/16 11:14 PM
If that $99 was including the shipping price, then the fish really aren't that expensive.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/09/16 01:10 AM
Originally Posted By: Rainman
John, I ship via FedEx overnight and same day air freight quite often...it is a very reliable way to get fish. Did you try Arkansas Pondstockers and Farmcat, in AR?

Osage Catfish farm in Missouri near Lake Ozark used to have albinos...not sure if they do anymore.


I have tried them all. They all quit breeding Albinos due to excessive predation losses. I have not seen cormorants around here; I am about 190 miles by road from Lonoke.

The price I got from Ohio is $90.50/dozen including shipping.
Posted By: Kris C5 Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/09/16 02:15 AM
Jones fish hatchery is in Ohio but they have albino cc always
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/09/16 02:33 AM
The place I found them in Ohio is Sugar Creek Fishery in Lima, OH.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/09/16 01:36 PM
Originally Posted By: Kris C5
Jones fish hatchery is in Ohio but they have albino cc always


Jones said they no longer have albinos. Apparently Sugar Creek Hatchery has cornered the market. They supposedly bought out the albino CC stock of JM Malone in Lonoke early last fall, and maybe some others too.
Posted By: Mike4634 Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/11/16 08:15 PM
Nemo Fisheries in Perry, Missouri has them but doesn't look like they ship them.
Posted By: Kris C5 Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/11/16 09:57 PM
I have some in my pond if they spawn I'll get you some if u want.
Posted By: BLUE72CAMARO Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/18/16 04:31 PM
Logan hollow fish farms in southern IL offered them thru my counties fish sale earlier this spring. So they may have some left.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/18/16 04:41 PM
I talked with Moore's Fish Farm near Inola, Oklahoma over the weekend (100 mile drive on good roads). He recently seined and is collecting some albinos for me in his holding tanks. He currently has six, and may have ten to twelve in about ten days. If so, I will go and get them. I don't want to risk shipping catfish. It's expensive, and live arrival, if guaranteed, never includes replacement shipping. The spines could penetrate the bags and all be DOA. I will bring a big cooler with 5 gallon buckets within.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/27/16 10:25 PM
I got ten albinos 6 to 11 inches today at Moore's Fish Farm. Only ten dollars for the lot. Made it home with them still lively, then acclimated and released them into my pond. About an hour later saw one of them swimming on the opposite side of the pond from release point. I guess they likely explore the whole pond upon release. Now have 12 albinos.
Posted By: snrub Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/27/16 11:49 PM
Glad you found what you wanted. Ought to be easy to spot in the water.

Bet they will become pets.
Posted By: Zep Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/28/16 12:14 AM
John...once you've gone albino you'll never go back!

laugh
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/28/16 01:37 AM
I intend to leave the albinos in to see how big I can grow them. As for the 65 regular channels I stocked, the plan is to catch most of them out as soon as they reach a good eating size. I am hand feeding morning and evening, what they will consume in about 10 minutes, a mix of catfish pellets and optimal, until the half bag of pellets is gone, then it will be all optimal sunfish food, since the BG eat alongside the CC. Some of those regular CC are considerably larger than others already; I guess they are "shooters". I really don't know how many survived the winter; I found nearly dead 6" one in Feb, that later died.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/29/16 07:59 PM
Now I might raise albinos myself. I found that a distant neighbor (27 miles) has a few albino channels in their pond. They seined it recently. I got three about 17 inches each. One appears to be a female full of eggs. At least one of the other two is male, I think. They are the only breeding sized CC in my pond. I have placed five culverts in four to five feet of water. I wonder what percentage of the offspring will be albino? That might be a question for the BOSS?
Posted By: RER Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/29/16 08:51 PM
if both parents are albino than all of them will be albino.

if one is albino and one is not and the one that is not does not carry the recessive albino gene than none will be albino.

if one is albino and one is not but carries the genes about 50% will be albino.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/29/16 10:35 PM
Then, I think if they spawn, all the spawn will be albino. Probably most of the fry would get eaten by BG, but I have two brush piles and several brick piles and large rocks in the pond for hiding places, in addition to the culverts, so maybe some will survive.
Posted By: Dave Davidson1 Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/30/16 10:16 AM
John, IMO, virtually none of the young will survive predation unless you can segregate them. I stocked 150 CC's in one of my ponds 15 years ago. To the best of my knowledge maybe one has escaped predation.

I have only 2 left.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/30/16 02:12 PM
Dave, did you mean you stocked 150 Albino CC? If I could capture some of them (trapping?), I could put them in my FH minnow pond until they reach 5 inches or so. How would I catch catfish fry? My pond is too deep and has too much structure to be seined.
Posted By: Mike4634 Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/30/16 04:05 PM
Originally Posted By: BLUE72CAMARO
Logan hollow fish farms in southern IL offered them thru my counties fish sale earlier this spring. So they may have some left.
.
Just got 50 albino catfish from them in Troy, IL this morning. They were a lot smaller than the 6" - 8" albino catfish I got from Nemo's at Farm and Home's fish sale.
Posted By: Zep Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/30/16 05:33 PM
Originally Posted By: Mike4634
Just got 50 albino catfish...They were a lot smaller than the 6" - 8" albino catfish I got from fish sale.


Mike do you have med/large predators in your pond?
Posted By: Dave Davidson1 Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/30/16 07:25 PM
No, only 2 were albinos and I never saw them after stocking. My statement was relating to CC fry and young being mostly food for other predators. They tend to be more of a put and take fish.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/30/16 08:04 PM
I wonder how CC manage to reproduce successfully in our local lakes and rivers? All sizes in abundance there.
Posted By: Dave Davidson1 Re: Albino channel catfish - 04/30/16 10:00 PM
I don't really understand that either. Maybe it's just more numbers.
Posted By: esshup Re: Albino channel catfish - 05/01/16 02:48 PM
Originally Posted By: John F
I wonder how CC manage to reproduce successfully in our local lakes and rivers? All sizes in abundance there.


Different habitat and predator density between private ponds and lakes/rivers. There is most likely more cover for the fish to hide in also.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 05/01/16 03:56 PM
Originally Posted By: esshup
Originally Posted By: John F
I wonder how CC manage to reproduce successfully in our local lakes and rivers? All sizes in abundance there.


Different habitat and predator density between private ponds and lakes/rivers. There is most likely more cover for the fish to hide in also.


Probably. The upper White River that feeds Lake Sequoyah and Beaver Reservoir is full of log jams and large boulders, and the upper reaches of the lakes are recipients of all the logs and trees washing down. Catfish are fairly dominant in these habitats; abundant CC, Blue Catfish and Flatheads.
Posted By: BLUE72CAMARO Re: Albino channel catfish - 05/02/16 03:56 PM
Originally Posted By: Mike4634
Originally Posted By: BLUE72CAMARO
Logan hollow fish farms in southern IL offered them thru my counties fish sale earlier this spring. So they may have some left.
.
Just got 50 albino catfish from them in Troy, IL this morning. They were a lot smaller than the 6" - 8" albino catfish I got from Nemo's at Farm and Home's fish sale.


I got my albino's from the farm and home sale in Alton two weeks ago. Released 33 of them into my pond have not seen a single one of them since. I am hoping that will change when the water temps come up a little higher.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 05/02/16 04:30 PM
If they were already pellet trained, they should surface feed when your water temp approaches 65 degrees. We had a cool snap yesterday and today, and my albinos were not very active this morning.
Posted By: BLUE72CAMARO Re: Albino channel catfish - 05/02/16 07:03 PM
I havent taken temp of my pond in a couple weeks but it was in the upper 50's two weeks ago when Rex put my bass in. So I am hoping to start seeing them in the next week or two. Its also difficult to see what is feeding on the pellets that get thrown further out away from the bank.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 05/26/16 02:28 PM
My albino CC number 14 out of 75 CC stocked. The feeding response of the albinos is excellent; I frequently see 8 to 10 at once in and near the PVC feed ring. Only see a couple of regular CC feeding in the PVC ring. Why would the regular CC be so feed ring shy while the albinos flock to it? If I throw food way farther out in the pond I see what might be dozens of catfish getting the pellets. The albinos and BG come to the feed ring in swarms when I walk out on the dock. The albinos seem to have different feeding habits even though they are the same species as regular gray-blue CC. My pond is clear enough to see any fish that comes inside the feed ring.
Posted By: John Fitzgerald Re: Albino channel catfish - 06/07/16 03:24 AM
Bump
Still no explanation for this behavior, and since the water warmed more it is even more pronounced. The albinos will swim on the surface scooping up a lot of the pellets, while the regular ones quickly pop up and get a pellet, then go back down. The albinos seem to be consuming nearly half the pellets, while being greatly outnumbered.
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