Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Small Pond in Arkansas

We just had a small pond finished at our future homesite. Its just a quarter acre big. Brand new so just a dirt/mud bottom at the time. I have put a few structures in as we are expecting thunderstorms/rain tomorrow and next week. Its 10-12 feet deep in spots and 6-8 feet in others.

One negative is we haven't started building our house there and probably won't until next year thus no electric for an aeration system. Wouldn't have dug the pond except needed some drainage work done and needed the dirt for the driveway and housepad.

I was hoping to at least get some feeder fish in this year. Have two young boys and I and them can't wait for the time spent together at the new home place and pond. I was hoping to be able to have bluegill and bass. Many ponds around have this with no upkeep at all. Most the bass are small and thats fine, not looking for something to put on the wall. Is a bluegill/LMB combo doable in this scenario? Don't really care for catfish but if its the only option then so be it.

If the BG/LMB is an option then what about the hybrid blue gills? This is new to me and the little reading I've done mention this species as well and they are many places to get them locally. Also, can you put the fatheads in as soon as it fills or would I need to wait for a while? What do they eat?

As you can tell a total newbie in this matter. Thanks

Welcome to the forum Tiger!

A BG/LMB fishery is the easiest to get going and maintain so you can definitely go that route. CC can be added as a bonus fish, but they are certainly not necessary. Also, a lack of aeration in the early years shouldn't be a problem. FHMs would be great to jump start your pond's forage base and you can definitely add them as soon as there's water. I'm sure some experts will jump in and welcome you shortly.

Welcome to the forum TigerFan...

You've found the right place to get your answers.

No aeration early in a pond's life is not a big issue. It is as the pond ages and the fish community starts reaching max biomass that aeration becomes more important. If you will have electric at the pond in a year or two, no problem at that time you can look into installing an aeration system. There are several people on here who really know their stuff when it comes to that.

As far as adding fish now, FHM(fathead minnows, the most common feeder/forage fish) can survive quite well in turbid(muddy) water. Their natural habitat often is just that. I see no reason why you couldn't stock them now. It would probably be a good idea to get some in rather than let the pond go without, as you may end up with a mosquito problem. I would consider a pound or two now and by the time you stock predator fish in a year, you'll have more than you could ever want....

For ponds in your size category, the LMB/BG option can work. However, it can be difficult to manage for a balanced fishery. Often times the LMB overpopulate and stunt, but this leads to a good number of quality BG in the 8"-10" range with a large number of LMB in the 8"-12" range and few to any bigger than that. I would not stock HBG(hybrid BG) in this scenario. If you feed your BG a pelleted feed such as Aquamax, you'll up your odds of producing even nicer sized BG. I would also consider stocking about a 1/4 to 1/3 of the number of sunfish as RES(redear sunfish). They fill a slightly different niche than BG and feed on snails which has anecdotal evidence of helping to reduce fish parasites as snails are a secondary host for many of them.

My personal preference for smaller ponds is an almost strict put and take fishery. Where as with the LMB/BG/RES pond, all species should naturally reproduce in your pond and thus maintain self sustaining populations, the following selection require annual or every other year stocking. In smaller ponds, I like the use of HBG and HSB(hybrid striped bass) combo. Both readily eat pellets so you can grow very nice sized fish without the worry of building a food chain which can be tough to do in a smaller pond as the fish often eat themselves out of house and home. HBG have minimal natural reproduction so they rarely if ever overpopulate. The few offspring they do produce are usually eaten by the HSB. The HSB will not reproduce at all in a small pond. This means you can actively control their numbers by the number you stock and take out. HSB are great fighters and many think they make great table fair as well. This combination can also work well with some CC(channel catfish) if you wish to add a little variety. I would also stock some RES as in the more traditional LMB/BG pond to help manage parasites and as an added bonus species with no repercussions. The HBG/HSB/possibly CC combo is an excellent small pond combo for backyard family fishing. HBG are aggressive biters, feisty fighters, and easy pellet eaters. HSB grow to 5 pounds on so in small ponds, readily take to pellets and don't over populate like LMB often do. CC can be stocked at just the numbers you want as well. Only 5 or 10 a year to add a little something different. Kids love catching them and many enjoy eating them. The 3 make a great kids fishery that adults love as well. Add the RES as a bonus fish and bingo, you have a great little pond, that require only pellets, annual stockings and little worry of overpopulation issues.

If these stocking strategies interest you, we can look at exact numbers for your size pond as well as a stocking timeline. Also we can consider feed trained vs. non feed trained fish.

Again, welcome to the forum!

Thanks guys, that's good news on the aeration and being able to wait. Any other important info I should be aware I'd appreciate it.

Do you have any specific concerns?

The land where the pond was built was an old cow farm many years ago. Land was divided up about 10 years ago and we bought the last 2 lots last year totalling 7 acres. When they started digging you could smell the old cows if you know what I mean. What does that mean for the ph and alkalanity of the soil?
Fatheads don't need anything once the water is in?
How long for the fatheads before I add bluegills and how many of each? Bass next spring?

It's really hard to tell how the past agricultural use of the land before your pond will affect it. Have you had the soil and/or water tested?

FHM are very hardy little buggers... If you want to help them spawn, give them flat things laying close to the bottom such as cinder blocks, pallets and plywood pieces. They will utilize them and spawn on the flat bottom sides of them. Other than that, they are pretty self sufficient. Don't expect them to last long once you add your bass...

When you stock is really up to in some ways. Just how muddy is the water? If it is very muddy, I'd hold on stocking anything but the FHM. When you do go to stock the BG/RES/LMB, I'd stock them all at the same time. I see no reason for your goals to give the BG a jump start on the bass unless you are stocking advanced sized LMB. If the water isn't too muddy, I'd stock the FHM this spring and the BG/RES/LMB in the fall. With a pond of your size, if you are interested in growing a bit bigger bass, I'd highly recommend you try to find feed trained LMB.

Let's see what other's opinions are on your pond...

I think you could put FHM's in a nuclear waste dump and they would live. I'm a little concerned about the runoff of an old cow lot and the possible over fertility. If the visibility settles to about 16+ inches, I wouldn't worry about the water. When the water clears, I would probably add some bluegills and see how they do.

I agree with what CJ and Dave suggested, the only thing that CJ left out when talking about the FHM spawing structure, is that they normally spawn in shallow water. I'd make sure that the spawning structure is placed in 2' or less of water.

Right now I have FHM in the pond working the edges of the pond in <2" of water, that's right, 2 inches.

Ok, just got back from doing a quick water test (what water is in there which is about 3 feet from rain about 10 days ago). PH of 6.7 and alkalinity of 30. Good, bad, ok?

OK