Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Advice stocking a new 1 acre pond in Michigan...

Hi folks,

Been off the forum for a few months. Been busy though - had a new (my 3rd) pond dug last fall. Its 1 acre surface area & nominally an average depth of 9-10 feet. A few shots of the building & filling process...

Getting started - this is a dug out pond in sand & clay...


Optimistically put in a dock (& some fish structure to the left) The pond is 2-3 feet deep in spots at this point.


And now it is full!


The main purpose for the pond is for use as irrigation for our fruit operation... But as you can see we laid it out for some serious recreational side benefits.

I don't fish much at all - but have grown kids who do & young 'uns all around who would love to fish. Looking for stocking advice to establish a robust BG and LMB fishery that won't have that much fishing pressure... (at least till the neighbors figure out what we have

My old & new ponds are connected via a swale that handles spring melt & heavy rains (we had >6 inches in last 2 weeks.) and I have noticed MANY (hundreds of) little bait fish in the new pond - and saw several little guys in the swale following the moving water. Pretty sure nothing of any size has migrated over.

(Have a write-up on the old pond from last year... Bascically it is so overgrown with algae in the summer that not many fish of any size are left in it. (although you can see in the photo below a Vertex until from Ted kept an open spot last summer.) )


Appreciate any advice for stocking. The local fish day is next week & I need to get an order in pronto!

Thanks!
all_wet

Looking around I found ewest quote on another thread:


I suppose this is the starting point? It seems a bit high ratio of BG (I recall 10:1 from last year's reading...) Is this for lunkers or for a balanced population?

I am assuming that since I already have minnows in abundance that I don't need any of them. I also read that the LMB should be put in 1 year after the BG.

Finally, I take it from other reading tonight that folks are a bit down on stocking CC. Any reason for that? Nothing more thrilling for a kid than a big CC on the line Just curious here.

Thanks,
all_wet

First I would check to see if the "minnows" are truly minnows or small sunfish of some sort that swam in from the other pond via the swale connection. A sort trapping session with a minnow trap baited with bread, dog-cat food, or fish food and a picture of the results should provide you with answers. Stocking of northern ponds for general fishing can be different fish ratios than for southern ponds or for ponds with speciality angling goals.

Thanks Bill,

The "minnows" are all pretty darn uniform. Didn't notice any variation last year or this year in my walks around the ponds.

Here is shot from last year of a couple of minnows that had been caught in some hardware cloth that I use to screen the outflow of the old pond. Is it clear enough to identify the species?

Thanks,
all_wet

They are central mudminnows.

CJBS beat me for posting this answer. Okay - the picture is good enough to tell they are not sunfish. From the picture they are probably mudminnows Umbra limi; a pretty good forage fish. They survive pretty good in low oxygen conditions. http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Default.aspx?tabid=21969

For a michigan general fishing pond if you want bluegill and largemouth with some catfish. Consider this stocking ratio. Bluegill fingerlings 2"-4" and or 3"-5" 400-500/acre; any combination of the two sizes. Largemouth 2"-4" and or 4"-6" 80-100/acre; any combination. In Michigan, history has shown the LMbass grow more slowly than southern bass and have a little more difficult time controlling the bluegill, thus the higher stocking density of 80-100 bass per ac. Catfish would be a bonus fish and you can stock 20-40/acre any size. Often in northern general fishing ponds the bluegill and bass are stocked together. This results in the bass having a slightly low food supply and keeps them hungry and in good control of the bluegill population. Bass can always be removed if you discover / decide you have too many bass and too few bluegill - mostly large ones, which is not a bad thing. Fall would be a good time to stock the fish. In the mean time the mudminnows should reproduce and provide lots of forage for the bass the first year, thus you bass should get a good established population.

I would set a minnow trap and/or run a seine through your pond and determine if any other visitors have shown up besides mudminnows.

Thanks Bill and CJSB... The mudminnows certainly like the mud. Part of my overflow is a short ditch and every spring that I clean it out I get 2-3 in each scoop of mud... Also makes sense that they thrive in low O2 environment - my old pond was basically abandoned for 12 years and was 100% covered with duckweed most summers - last year was first attempt at aerating ever...

In the older pond I stocked BG (2-4") & LMB (3-4") last May and then ran an aerator all summer. Haven't seen any sign of either since late last summer... The mudminnows however are VERY VERY abundant in the old pond this spring. I see schools that are 10-12 feet in diameter in the 1/4 acre pond...

Put my order in today - the local fish day is next week. Buying some FHM as well to ensure the new 1 acre pond has enough food for the BG & LMB.

Will also order an aerator for the new pond & ensure it doesn't lack for O2 from the get go.

Thanks,
all_wet