I've researched all of the fish farms in No. Cal. and am frustrated at the lack of size selection / availability. I am curious to know if anyone has knowledge of a good source of Bluegill in CA. Conversely, does anyone know of a Coppernose Bluegill supplier outside of CA that will ship via Fedex breeders? I will need to check with the Dept of Fish and Game about getting permission, etc.

Not having seen Coppernose Bluegill I have a number of questions:

How are they different (other than as the name suggests) from run of the mill Bluegill. Are they more prolific breeders? Does anyone know of the origin of the (sub)species? How big do they get?

We've been catching (and releasing) a good number of Bass in the past couple of weeks. I would like to ensure that the food chain is fortified. Most of last years hatch appears to have fed the bass over the Winter. Our smallest fish are about 1# and average 3-4# with the largest going 8.5#. Our water temp has likely climbed 10 degrees in the past 2 weeks (now it is 66 degrees) and the Bass are heading for the beds.

We've installed a Vertex system in our 9 acre pond and it is keeping the vegetation down (though the visibility is about 6 feet). We are in the process of readying the system for installation in our 6 acre lake and while the visibility is similar, there is significantly more vegetation. Is there an optimal (minimal?)temperature for an algae bloom?