Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Creating the food chain Too many minnows?

Been trying to create the food chain for a couple of years now.. fishing it and can only catch these big ol' minnows. I should have bass, catfish, redears and bluegills in here too, but can't catch any..



checked it out this past weekend and the minnows look out of control. thick groups of shiners everywhere.. can almost walk on em!



Should I go get more catfish or something?

Man I wish I had that problem...I'd suggest adding some more LMB or HSB...or both. A bottom heavy food chain is just waiting for some nice top end predators to get in there and eat themselves silly.

I bet your original stocking is still there, just so fat and sassy you can't catch them. I drained a small pond on my place a few years ago that was chock full of nothing but GSF - I'd have bet money there was nothing else in there. Out came 11 FAT 3-4 lb LMB's when we drained it. And this pond was maybe 1/4 acre and tops 6 feet deep. I had no idea any predators were in there...no way to catch them, they were all filled to capacity with small GSF's...

That's what i'm telling myself, too fat and happy to catch. Will HSB live in a small tank? This tank is only about 3/4 acre 10 ft deep at that max.

Hey Jaymz,

Yes HSB will live in 3/4 acre. I have 25 in my 1 acre pond and they are doing good! The nice thing about HSB is they won't spawn on you so they are a nice add. Plus they should be able to handle that minnow pretty easy. HSB have issue trying to eat BG that are over 3 inches as their mouth is not as big as a LMB but for those minnows HSB should be fine! As far as how many??? Not sure about that. I put 25 in mine but I feed mine too. It's always best to start off conservative! Maybe 10 or 15 and see how it goes?

RC

Your bass and catfish may have so much to eat that they don't go after smaller food items, or at least as readily.

Have you put any of those minnows on a hook and seen what bites?

I will next time I am out there! Thanks for the insight everyone, this has been an adventure!