Hey guys! I live just north of Jacksonville, FL and im currently having a 1 1/2 acre pond being dug. They are knocking it out quick and was trying to find a fish farm or online store to buy some fathead minnows and threadfin shad to start the base of my food chain. If ya have any info let me know. Thank you very much!
Threadfin shad(TFS) generally don't do well in and aren't recommended for ponds under 5 acres.
What are your goals for the pond?
Threadfin shad also do not do well in ponds without a decent plankton bloom. Shad are planktivores thriving on healthy populations of phytoplankton and zooplankton. Clear water ponds will not grow very many shad. In more clear water habitats you are probably better using golden shiners.
Hey thanks for replying bill, My goal is to have a trophy bass pond. Planned on stocking bass, bluegill, shell cracker, channel catfish, and for forage was going stock fathead minnows, mosquito fish aka local minnows, shinners, crawfish and saw a video about adding shad, but you make a good point
Hey thanks for replying bill, My goal is to have a trophy bass pond. Planned on stocking bass, bluegill, shell cracker, channel catfish, and for forage was going stock fathead minnows, mosquito fish aka local minnows, shinners, crawfish and saw a video about adding shad, but you make a good point
FWIW I agree with Bill C. I pretty much always do. He always gives well thought out and experienced advice.
Golden Shiners are in a lot of florida waters, and I'm pretty sure they use some of the large adults as live bait for LMB.
Golden Shiners are in a lot of florida waters, and I'm pretty sure they use some of the large adults as live bait for LMB.
Yea we do, and I have them in my grand fathers pond, so I have a sorce to get them. As for the bass I have been seeing folks talk about the F1 strain, but I probably wont stock bass until I return from deployment next spring so starting with the bait fish for now to setup the pond
Given the size of your pond you may want to revisit adding channel catfish to your pond. They will compete with LMB for forage, and some folks have stated from experience that after hooked and landed CC become hook shy and are difficult to then remove (by fishing for them).
Look to freshwater prawns as another possible source of high protein forage for the LMB.
Freshwater prawns? What species? None that I know of will reproduce in ponds...
Since you are in FL, I would simply use Florida LMB... I would not use F1's.
For forage, I would stock coppernose BG, which are also native to FL as well as RES. You can consider tilapia, but be careful as they are very prolific and will not die off like further north. They could very well be more problem than benefit. Since you will have some time between stocking forage and stocking bass, I would also look at LCS as a forage option. They are native and found in many Florida lakes. GSH are also a good option.
Thanks for the info guys, but no one has told me a place to get fathead minnows yet lol
Freshwater prawns? What species? None that I know of will reproduce in ponds...
Since you are in FL, I would simply use Florida LMB... I would not use F1's.
For forage, I would stock coppernose BG, which are also native to FL as well as RES. You can consider tilapia, but be careful as they are very prolific and will not die off like further north. They could very well be more problem than benefit. Since you will have some time between stocking forage and stocking bass, I would also look at LCS as a forage option. They are native and found in many Florida lakes. GSH are also a good option.
To sound like the new guy I am lol what does LCS stand for? I know BG is blue gill, RES is red ear sun fish and im guessing GSH are golden shiners and yea no tilapia for me, they are in every high way pond out here.
I'd do an internet search of fish farms/hatcheries in the Florida, south Georgia area.
The first thread in the Archives are the abbreviations.
Dave could you post a link for me?