Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose suggestions on fish please

I currently have one large natural (aprx 1 acre) pond that has Lord only knows what in it, a small preform 200 gallon pond that has 3 Koi in it that I will be giving away to a neighbor this coming spring, a 200 gallon preform that I haven't done anything with (have ideas that I am going to experiment with next spring), a 200 gallon preform specifically for tads, another 300-350 gallon preform that has Wakins in it. I am keeping the Wakins.

I am in northern Illinois near Lake Michigan.

I'm considering adding another pond. Approximately 8-10,000 gallons with the deepest area at 5'. Actually, I will start a little bit of excavating for it this coming summer.

Which species of fish indigenous to my region might best survive in this type of an environment? I have decided to line it with epdm. It would have filtration.

May I also please have information on where I might be able to locate any native species suggested.

Thank you

First off are you sure you need a liner? If you don't need one you're better off as not only will it save you some money, but natural bottom works to your benefit providing a food source and nitrifying characteristics.

For a pond that small I would go will all hybrid feed trained bluegills that you can replant on a regular basis or all male regular bluegills, all female yellow perch etc. However with the regular male bluegills you'd have to do some sorting in spring before you planted when you can easily tell the difference.

You could catch male only bluegills from you one acre pond or you can purchase native species from a hatchery. You have a hatchery in Richmond Ill. near the Wisconsin line that offers good quality fish. Its' called Keystone Hatchery and I would ask for Mike. (815)678-2537 www.keystonehatcheries.com

Maybe you want to talk to Mike to consider your options. Mike has given me good info in the past when other suppliers did not. Keystone's hybrid bluegills are produced on site in very controlled conditions out of season so they're hybrids are high quality.

Or larger Koi is an option too if you just want fish but not necessarily for fishing.

what are "wakins"?

You may need to areate a pond that is only 5' deep in MI. I would also look into how many fish a pond like that can hold with out filtration. Could save some money and its one less thing to go wrong.

Hi, here's a link to Wakins.
http://www.wakinworks.com/sales.htm
Nothing more than an attractive goldfish but our kids like them so they stay. The koi were a gift from a friend after a heron and a raccoon family repeatedly wiped me out. I have no desire to own koi any longer and aside from that, they are in a pond that is too small for them. My neighbor is going to take them next spring. They'll be well taken care of and she would never release them into a natural waterway so I'm ok with her having them.

The pond I will be selecting fish for is relatively small at or slightly under 10k (not nearly as small as the preforms) and it will not be able to support a tremendous amount of fish but I can hopefully get a little diversity in there even if it is only 10 of one species and 5 of another or whatever. Ideally, I'd like to have 3 different species in there however this may not be realistic. I really don't want anything in there that isn't native to my area though. The fish I sort of had my eye on were Southern Redbelly Dace (Phoxinus erythrogaster), Orange-Spotted Sunfish (Lepomis humilis), Banded Darters (Etheostoma zonale), and maybe a few Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus dolomieu). I was planning on providing aquatic vegetation as well as rock piles at the bottom of the pond to provide cover. I have no idea if these species would work though. Yes, I know there are species in there that will eat other species but then the heron or the raccoon might get the Smallmouth Bass.

Time is on my side in selecting fish as the backhoe doesn't come until sometime this summer so I'd probably add fish the following spring.

I'll have a decent pump and biofilter as well as a skimmer and a UV filter so we'll be ok there. I must admit I am not selecting those but they were some of the first "accessories" I asked about as they are sort of pricey and cost is going to be a factor.

Unfortunately, I have to go with an epdm liner. Sure do wish I could go with bentonite clay but it is not going to work and would end up being nothing but trouble in the long run.

Thanks for the link to Keystone. I filled out their survey and we'll see what they come up with.