Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Help with determining BG Sex

Hi again,

I've read through the threads on sexing BG - and pretty much know what I should be looking for. Most times, I don't have any problem telling. In our pond we'll probably start keeping for the table female BG over 6" after the spawn. I'd like to try to limit fish kept to females, because I believe the advantages of having abundant stud males, and especially because it will help me teach catch & release with the kids.

So the reason for my post, - in our pond we still seem to have enough suspended clay particles - that the BG colors seem quite faded. I guess next spring after a winter of calm & under ice settling - we'll see if this changes. But right now - most of the BG look very similar.

Based on what I've learned here - I would ID this 6" BG as a female - do you agree?



and this 4-5" is maybe a somewhat stunted male?:



If you can, tell me what you think -
Thanks
FH

I'm 99% sure that you are correct on the top fish, that it's a female.

I'm 75% sure that you are correct on the bottom fish, that it's a smaller male.

The nice thing about your harvest female philosophy is that it's no big deal if you're wrong every once in a while.

I agree with Bruce.

Not so sure the second fish is stunted. Maybe immature.

If you are mangaging a pond for Largmouth Bass, but want to harvest a few bluegill, should you try and take out the males or females?

Our (OK, my) latest speculation was to remove larger males if managing for bass. I would love to have an expert confirm or deny this, whichever is right.

See Culling Bluegill

I really like that thinking. I don't know why I never considered that possibility.

Amazing in it's simplicity. It could work...

Some FS are telling LMB pond clients not to remove BG (or not many). The more forage the better. Some still say its ok to eat a few but to leave the largest ones. None that I know of suggest following the old rule of taking out 10 lbs of BG for each lb of LMB removed.

If I were going to manage a LMB pond by removing one type of BG it would be the large males but not off the beds during spawning. This is because the large males suppress the spawning of smaller males and thus keep overall BG #s down. There is a lot of unknown WRT the effect of this tactic on overall poundage of BG produced for forage.

is it a "tactic" or a "strategy" ?

sorry, ok back to my corner now...

Doesn't that date back to the days where pond management meant trying to get as much fish to eat out of the pond as possible? The 10:1 rule was a guideline to harvest beau coup fish without getting the pond all out of balance.

I see what you did there

Theo you are right as to the reason for those rules. Most people were taking way to many LMB out of their ponds for a food source and way to few BG and ended up with a pond full of small fish not really big enough to serve as a food source. Those stocking rules will still work with the right harvest/mgt actions. Plus they were not developed with the benefit of fertilization and supp. feeding in mind.

Most of the FS I know now suggest more BG , additional forage sources (TShad , tilapia , GShiners etc)fertile water , supp. feeding and fewer LMB as that works better with current trends in fish harvest. At least in the south. I am not sure about northern stocking methods as they seem all over the place with great differences. Some say LMB first then BG , some just the opposite. With LMB spawning at 2 rather than 1 and BG tending to get out of control if they have to much of a lead on the predators it is a different situation.

ewest, the one guy JHAP and i used out here recommended same time stocking of BG and LMB.....BG in the 2.5-5-inch class, and LMB in the 2-4-inch class, which would probably work, but i'd still lean on the forage first, predator later and in lower numbers.




it was appropriately ignored chuck
i think there's another go at it tonight.

I have tried and tried! There is no way I can figure out the sex of the BG.


Seriously, between you and me though, you gotta drop the bean counter! It's creepy listening to a guy that sounds like my wife........well, when I actually listen it does....

hey its easy rainman, as you quietly sit in the jon boat, listening to the breeze in the trees, drinkin a cold one, drowning a worm for BG (all while thinking about those household and property chores) you catch a BG and haul it up to look at it. a female BG quits moving, gives you a long cold stare, puts her fins on her hips waiting for you to put her back in the water. a male BG keeps flopping around, falls off the hook, knocks over yer beer, lays in the sudsy puddle, takes a deep drink, winks at ya, and jumps back in only to get caught again.

also, actually, i'm thinkin a bean counter is not a bad friend to have in these times

Are you referring to this bean counter or some other bean counter?

Are you saying I sound like your wife?

Did you wash your hands before dinner and have you taken out the trash?

Why is it you don't bring me flowers anymore?

Jhap, I apologize! BUT only because the now nearly completely recovered, brain tumor free, rather pi$$sed at my comment, bigger than me, MEANER than me, sweet, kind, forgiving. and loving bean counter of mine, softly suggested I do so, else the softly would become a VERY hard squeeze with a removing twist at the end.
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BTW, you were sleeping and didn't get to see the "Rest Of the Story". While my posts were moderated with exterme predjudice , Died's was strategicly(sp) edited.

You've never had that happen have you?

subsitute "bean counter" for BG
sustitute "bar stool" for hook