Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Corrective stocking Got my HSB today..

Hey guys got my HSB today..

These things are huge already.. Most are pushing 2lbs probably 15".. Sorry didn't measure or take pics

The guy was awesome he delivered them for free really took his time acclimating them and informing me.. He threw in 15 extra for free.. He said they were actually alot bigger than he thought when he took out of there cages.. He used some kind of oil to stun them I thought for sure they were dead they were just laying in my pond on there Backs just started flipping and swam off it was pretty wild..

You Plan on pellet feeding? I had stocked 40 in April but haven't seen them feed...it is a retention pond,maybe they all went down the drain?... Bg and hbg on feed and the grass carps But still no HSB... There are some 12 - 15 in lmb , maybe they took out most of them.... Good luck, they are a blast to catch.

I have 3 feeders now running.. I figure they'll eat feed or hammer small BG either way a plus..

BGK,

Congrats! I got 25 of them in April they are fighters. Even at 11 inches they fight! With all that food they should grow fast!! I have not caught any of mine lately. I hope they made it with the heat I have had and low waters I am not sure how they are doing???

The 20 I put in this past Spring are doing well also. I've not fished for them in quite awhile, but they still soak the grass along the bank when they feed on the AQ!

Thanks RC, yours are taking to pellets pretty good if I remember right?

Anyone got any opinions on how big I should expect these fish to get??

Yes they are eating pellets as they were pellet trained before I got them. I have read that if you feed them they can gain up to 2 pounds a year I think that's tops but that's pretty darn good. I got mine in April they were 8 to 10 inches. The last one I caught in June was already pushing 12 inches. You won't believe how fast they grow! And fight!!! They also say around 3 pounds is the cut off rate for catching HSB in hot water for most folks. Most HSB 3 pounds or bigger in 80 plus water temps have a hard time living after you catch them because they give you EVERYTHING they got in the fight when they are caught they just cant recoup! Even if they swim off some folks have said they will see them floating 2 to 3 days later. So be careful in the warm water months when you catch them.

Corey

Maximum size of HSB when they are fed pellets is often related to water quality. If water quality stays reasonable, 8-10 pound HSB are reasonable to expect in 6 or so years. If you have extremely good water quality where water temps stay below 74 degrees and DO stays about 5 ppm or so, you could expect HSB to max out around 14-16 pounds. I don't know the details of your pond. Small HSB are tolerant of water into the 80's even low 90's if DO remains above 5 ppm. HSB above about 4 pounds begin to become more sensitive to temp and DO needs. When they begin pushing double digits, that is when they begin needing water quality almost on the same plain as trout.

He checked my PH, D.O, and temps.. Temps was 80° PH was perfect (according to him don't know what the # was) and my DO was 12 which he said was excellent.. Overall he said my pond and water quality was some of the best he's seen in awhile.. I told him it was all because of Pondboss.com

My water is over 74° most of the summer should i expect slow growth? I don't understand what you mean here CJ can you explain that to me a little better.. Thanks for the info guys

In your situation expect a good 4-6 lbs for an average with some of them pushing 6-8. As a rule of thumb they are much much easier to get above 5 lbs than largemouth bass!

I'm looking for 10 to 12 N8ly

George has a good HSB ambulance to revive them in. PM him and I'm sure he can tell you how he made it.

I contacted George before buying them

I would be happy fishing for 3 -5 lb HSB the rest of my life …..
They are the out fightingest fresh water that swims IMO.

Most of you that know me know that I am an avid fly fisherman.
I can’t fish big water any more, and a pond is a means to an end for me.
Our 2 acre pond is fly fishing only for me and it’s all about HSB!
I have to admit that I have fallen in love with CNBG in the process.

If you are serious about raising HSB for sport fishing, use heavier tackle, land them quickly, resusitate and release.

If for table fare, have fun on light tackle and release to the grease.

My ICU unit Scott refers to is an O2 system in a Igloo cooler.
A couple of drops of clove oil will put them asleep until weighing, measuring and photos. Release them to swim away to catch another day - they are too valuable to catch only once!
Don’t fish for them in water temps above 80+ degrees.

My favorite fish - size doesn’t matter!

Clove oil is the stuff he used to stock them.. Pretty near knocked them clean out..

Smaller HSB love warm water. They'll grow rather fast in it as a matter of fact. Larger HSB have less tolerance to warmer water and lower DO. The fact that your water temp gets above 74 degrees means you are going to probably top out around 8-10 pound HSB. Might be able to push 12 but I doubt it. As HSB get larger, they become more and more like pure striped bass in their needs as opposed to white bass. Larger pure striped bass need water parameters similar to trout. It is why the vast majority of pure striped bass spawn in the tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay but spend their summers in New England. The Bay gets too warm for them, so they swim north for the summer. In landlocked lakes, pure striped bass head for the deeper waters of lakes and hang out around the thermocline. In lakes which do not have highly oxygenated cold thermoclines, you rarely see pure stripers above 20 pounds with maybe a fish or two pushing 30. In lakes with highly oxygenated cold thermoclines, you'll see them go over 50+ pounds. Look at where the world record HSB came from... Greers Ferry Lake. It's over 40,000 acres in size and over 160 feet deep. Lots of cold high DO thermocline to cruise in.

What if I have good quality water and high DO? Will that help offset the warm water.. I'd be happy and satisfied with 10 pounders that's kinda what I was expecting.. but bigger would be great..

Bluegillkiller, just plan on stocking a handful of them every year so you dont worry if people do catch them and accidentally kill them. Too many people miss out on tons of fish catching fun for fear of catching and harming their prize HSB.

They are cheap entertainment for your situation....no worries on double digits, you'll be very happy with 5 lbers.

A 10 pound HSB will whoop you silly... Even a 5 pounder will! They make LMB look like kids play.

Have hooked on to close to 10 lb one at Lake Texoma, and it is quite the fight. They have several runs in them.

They seem to be going full speed when they hit too, so the reel starts screaming immediately.

I recently caught a 27 inch HSB on a local lake. It was like hooking a freight train with a bad attitude.

I like all these comments lol.. N8ly the guy who stocked them said I should make a plan for stocking every other year that was kinda my plan.. They will be getting caught and ate not baby'd like my BG

Great news on your HSB, but you may not like my comment.

I would be on the cautious side of thinking your DO is that high.



This graph represents the solubility of oxygen in water at various temperatures. This is based on 1 atmosphere of pressure.

Any reading on the right side of the red line requires increased pressure to achieve. In your case, you would be about 1.5 times atmospheric pressure, or about 23 psi.

Not saying the measurements taken are incorrect, just saying to be a bit cautious.

You can take DO readings around diffusers, and they will be higher, but DO will quickly find a new home in water that is not in a supersaturated state, under increased pressure as yours appears to be.