Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Evaluating and adjusting fish populations Crappie, Bream, Catfish, Bass all in 1 acre! HELP!

I need some help/advice. I have a pond that's around an acre in total area and might be 8-10 feet deep in at it's deepest point. This pond was a farm pond that was built in around 1915. It's now surrounded by 5 homes in a residential area. About 5 or 6 years ago my neighbor decided to put a cooler full of crappie in the pond.

I fish the pond quite a bit and usually fish for bream. Over the past 3 years the quality of the fish has taken a pretty good nose dive. All of the bass are small, the bream are getting smaller and the crappie are getting smaller. When I do set out a line for catfish they're huge! 10-15lbs easily and some are bigger.

I talked to the state DNR several years ago when I first discovered the crappie and they told me to drain it and start over. I'm not sure that is an option with me not having total control over the pond.

I've read a few other post and will start taking out smaller bass and all the crappie that I catch(which I do anyway). What else could I do to create a healthier fish population?

Welcome, cannon! We're glad you found us. Good question and one that the experts will have a lot of good advice on. I'm not one of them, though!

You are on the right track with just keeping every small fish you catch. Someone will no doubt give you an idea of what size to consider keeping, but I would say for starters, keep all LMB under 12 inches, all bluegill/bream less than 6 or 7 inches, and probably keep every single crappie as they will multiply to make rabbits look like amateurs if not properly managed. It sounds like you're seeing classic stunting as a byproduct of someone trying to be "helpful" with the crappie without a solid management plan being in place.

A lot will also depend on your goals with the pond. Why don't you share some of that info with the group and it will make the good input a lot more meaningful. Also tell us more about the pond in terms of who has rights to it if you are not the exclusive owner, and if there are any rules/regulations governing what you can or can't do with it.

Again, welcome - stick around and stay involved in the forums!

Todd, thanks for the reply! I didn't even know this site existed! But from what I've read it's awesome! I'm looking forward to using it as a great resourse to produce a lot healthier pond.

As far as the goals I have for the pond I'd have to say I just want it to be a well rounded fishery. I'd like to catch bass larger than the lures I'm throwing and I'd like to catch bream big enough to eat. The only people who are allowed to fish the pond are the adjacent property owners and of course anyone they give permission to. I fish the pond a lot more than the next person by a large margin. I've been taking the small bream out and every crappie I catch. I'm going to start working on the bass. I'd really like to catch large bream/blugill and decent to large bass. I'm not really sure where the catfish fit in all of this. They're nice to have for a fish fry but these fish are very large and hard to catch. Thoughts?

Thanks again!

A few more thoughts before I've exhausted the sum of all my pond knowledge!

* Catching eating sized bream probably requires that you get a good chunk of them into the 8 or so inch range. Just start culling all the small guys, I think, again under maybe 6 inches until you start seeing a better size trend. Then you can start taking out the bigger ones as well. Forum member catmandoo has an awesome BG pond in which he frequently culls all fish under like 8 inches. He just caught a 13 incher this past weekend! It's taken some time for him to see those results, so definitely take your time.
* Getting big BG can really be helped by having an overabundance of LMB, but the effect is that the LMB will be smallish on average compared to what you could achieve if you were managing for big bass. But, having those large numbers is important to growing bigger BG. To be sure, you'll still have a handful of LMB that grow up nicely, but they won't be monsters in most cases and there won't be many of them. I have this situation in one of my ponds and am starting to see some really nice sized BG with lots of 10 - 12 inch LMB. The biggest I've caught so far - only owned the farm since August - was around 16 inches and pushing 2 pounds, which was a really exciting catch in my book.
* The cats will become hook shy once caught and will get harder to catch. Unless you just like having them in there doing their thing with the off chance of catching one every now and again, keep them after you catch them. Depending on what kind they are, at the right size they'll start munching on any other fish in the pond, but they won't be a good population management fish in most cases.
* Final point, Pond Boss is the single greatest pond management resource on the planet! Subscribe to the magazine for additional great stuff that you can't get here. If you click on the link in my signature, it'll take you to the subscription page - best $35 you'll spend this year!

Again, this is all pretty uninformed info, so please hang on for input from the many folks here who know better, many of who also do it for a living. I'm just a dude with a farm and a couple of ponds who's trying to learn all I can to make them better, just like you!

Thanks Again Bud,

I'd much rather catch large BG than LMB. I fish a lot of larger impoundments for bass and the BG on UL tackle is more fun than I can shake a stick at.

Cannon if clsoe by might consdier us providing a consult many times the lake owners will listen to a fish biologist evne though you are providing the right advice. From what your telling me I think if possible ( I know no one wants to hear it) draining is by far best option. By next year you will be on the way to growing bigger fish and longterm best choice. Good luck

Why not evaluate and consider eradicating fish and not drain the lake?

I'm fine with draining the pond honestly. I'd like to build a small dock and do some cleaning etc...I'd also like to strategically place structure as well. I know I have a few of the owners in the right frame of mind but I don't think all of them will go for it, at least from my initial conversations with them.

I've had GADNR out here and they told me to drain it. I think the biggest thing for everyone is enduring the cost of consulting, draining and whatever care is taken after that is the main hindrance. Then having to police the pond fairly strictly to ensure the same problems are not prevalent a few years from now.

Who is the owner of the pond?
Who has legal access to it?

Once that is established, you and the other involved parties with the pond can work together to form rules that all involved parties will follow. Community ponds work best that way in my experience. Money is often the biggest contention with community ponds. No one wants to flip the bill. As a group you can work out finances and decide the best way to achieve the goals you all want with the money you all are willing to spend.

Draining the pond would no be overly expensive in most circumstances. A 1 acre 8'-10' pond is not that much water. A simply siphon system may very well work and be VERY cheap.

The draining of the pond can lead to more expensive projects involving renovation, such as dredging the bottom of nearly 100 years of sedimentation and dead plant material. This can be very expensive though. It also allows the building of the dock and the placing of structure much easier...

Draining of the pond also removes the complete fish community allowing for the proper stocking of the pond to reach your goals. Retnone the most commonly used piscicide can be used to renovate the pond as the Pond Boss himself mentioned without the need for draining the pond.

There are several available options. First I would answer the first two questions I asked. Consult with the involved parties, and then decide what options are best for the group.

As of right now draining the pond is no option. The owners of the pond are the property owners that adjoin the pond. So eradication is probably the best bet as we speak. It may take some time but I'm going to start working on the other homeowners to see if I can't persuade them to drain the pond. I'd like to accomplish a few of the things you mentioned in restoring the pond and building a better fishery.

Thanks for your input and any further advice CJBS.