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Joined: May 2008
Posts: 376
Lunker
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OP
Lunker
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 376 |
I have finally taken ownership of my new pond. Fished it the morning before the closing. 12 fish in 45 minutes of fishing a mini crawfish crankbait: 6 LMB(3 small, 3 12") and 6 BG/HBG(1 9" BG, others small). I finally got to talk to the previous owner and he said it was stocked with LMB, BG, HBG, crappie(don't know which), and CC. How many fish should I be harvesting to keep the populations in check. It is 3 or 4 acres, have not measured it yet or the depth. The fish look fat and healthy, and I want to keep it that way.
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 16,025 Likes: 274
Moderator Lunker
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Moderator Lunker
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 16,025 Likes: 274 |
Any idea when it was stocked, numbers stocked of each species and schedules?
It's not about the fish. It's about the pond. Take care of the pond and the fish will be fine. PB subscriber since before it was in color.
Without a sense of urgency, Nothing ever gets done.
Boy, if I say "sic em", you'd better look for something to bite. Sam Shelley Rancher and Farmer Muleshoe Texas 1892-1985 RIP
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Joined: May 2008
Posts: 376
Lunker
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OP
Lunker
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 376 |
All of the fish were stocked at the same time about 12 months ago. They were the species listed above. He did not remember how many of each, just several sacks of each from the "fish truck that comes down from Arkansas regularly". The pond probably has some other fish in it since it is over 40 years old in its current incarnation and several ponds are upstream and I am pretty sure a BG does not grow to 9" in 12 months. I am assuming all of the fish stocked were fingerlings or something very small, because he mentioned he could not fish it last year since the fish were to small to catch. This is the first time he has stocked it and he has owned it since the early '70's.
Last edited by jeffreythree; 06/08/08 07:13 PM.
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Joined: May 2004
Posts: 13,938 Likes: 268
Moderator Lunker
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Moderator Lunker
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 13,938 Likes: 268 |
FWIW, the HBG could be harvested at your leisure once they are a usable size. Since regular BG were also stocked, the hybrids will have no long term impact on the pond's fish populations. They will be out-bred by the BG (which will outgrow them as well, if managed properly) in short order.
"Live like you'll die tomorrow, but manage your grass like you'll live forever." -S. M. Stirling
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Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 13,685 Likes: 281
Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
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Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 13,685 Likes: 281 |
I would continue trying to learn more about what fish are in the pond now before I started doing any culling.
I don't think you can depend much on what the previous owner told you. If it was only 12 months back, I doubt there would be any balance yet, and like you said, who knows about stockings from the past several years.
Excerpt from Robert Crais' "The Monkey's Raincoat:" "She took another microscopic bite of her sandwich, then pushed it away. Maybe she absorbed nutrients from her surroundings."
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Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 267
Lunker
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Lunker
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 267 |
I would suggest keep fishing the pond with a variety of lures, baits, techniques, etc. and chronicle what you catch. It will give you a better idea of the species you have to contend with. It may also give you a general idea of the different sizes of those species.
Water dries, rocks crumble, and trees die. The only thing that is eternal is the reputation we leave behind. - Ancient Viking Proverb
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