Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Raising Forage and Bait Freshwater Shrimp Source contacted me today.

I got this email today. I'm not plugging them or pushing this supplier, but thought if would be of interest to some of you. Moderators if this is not appropriate please feel free to remove it or whatever.

FRESHWATER SHRIMP

For the past several years we have been harvesting "freshwater shrimp" (Gammarus lacustris) for stocking in ponds for waterfowl enhancement. Over the past two years, we have been getting more and more calls from folks that have trout or other fish and want shrimp for stocking in these ponds...extremely high in protein and a natural native food source!

We are located in Minnesota and can only harvest shrimp in January, February and first part of March. On occasion, if there is enough ice and snow cover, we can get some harvest in later December. This year may be one of those cases as we already have 5 to 6 inches of ice.

We are contacting you to inquire if you are interested in any shrimp yourself or if you would like to offer shrimp to your customers (current customers as well as past customers). Orders will be taken and filled on a first come first serve basis. Since we harvest from native ponds, total harvest is always an unknown. The best option is to order early to allow us ample time to put your order together. Ordering at the end of the harvest season is always the riskiest as ice becomes more unsafe and then we just have to discontinue harvest for safety reasons.

We sell shrimp by the gallon.

There are 20 to 40 thousands shrimp per gallon. That's a lot of shrimp!

If we can line up enough orders, we will make routes and deliver the shrimp ourselves for best handling and delivery.

Otherwise, we can ship them.

IMPORTANT...shrimp have to be released within 48 hours of packaging as they are live critters. If shipped, we ship in 5 gallon Styrofoam containers next day delivery (1 gallon per container with an equal amount of water added). That will provide 24 hours for shipping and 24 hours for stocking. Shrimp can be released into the pond that you want stocked or they can be released into stock tanks for temporary holding and distribution.

Cost - $95 per gallon (about $0.003 cents per shrimp) * Price is subject to change. Order early to hold this price.

Shipping - varies depending on location $40 to $100 per gallon. Shipping will be prorated if a route can be set up. These are "next day" delivery costs. We can and have delivered from coast to coast.

Sales Commission - If you are interested in offering shrimp to your customers for their ponds, we would be happy to set you up with a sales commission of 10% on gross sales. A performance increase to 15% may be granted with larger sales volumes.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. I will look forward to hearing from you!

Kyle, PLM
http://www.HabitatNOW.com

I went to the website and here is the contact info:



PLM, Prairie Land Management, Inc.
10 Marsh Street
Glenwood, Minnesota 56334

Phone 320-268-3396
Fax 320-268-3565
TOLL FREE 1-888-479-1760
info@habitatnow.com

So.... what is the suggested stocking rate for shrimp in a pond that has LMB, RES, CC, BG, and HBG?

Id like to try a gallon,but the frieght seems kinda high.Being in Texas Im sure it would cost me the 100 bucks.

Bill Cody put some in his pond and he believes they disappeared. He thinks they need cold water. I've seen them in the northern midwest but we don't have any here in the central midwest that I know of.

I put in a bunch of these earlier this year from these guys. There are a LOT of shrimp in the gallon.

I saw survivors for a few weeks here and there, but haven't over the summer.

What was the actual result? I have no idea. My guess is that I don't have a population even though I way overstocked. They might be in some of my dense vegetation, but I haven't seen any. Not sure of the water temperature issue.

Did it help get the BG off to a good start early in the year? Maybe. Was this a nice nutritional change vs Aquamax and other bugs? Probably. Did they seem to absolutely love eating them? Absolutely. Was this like putting fathead into a bass pond? Pretty much. Snack snack snack.

Regardless, my BG were very happy and have already been begging me to place an order for next year.

Wonder if scuds would survive in the Gulf coast region?

From my own experience, scuds do not survive in any numbers when fish are present. I know that sounds funny but they are not real good at avoiding predation (slow swimmers)and rely on the cover provided by bushy pond vegitation.Sorry, I don't recall what Bill Cody identified as good pond plants for this purpose. I have transplanted many G. Lacustris to my pond while I still had trout, and within only a week they were gone, even with good cover. Since my pond is now fishless, the scuds are thick.
I have also noted the same thing at local lakes and ponds, lots of scuds means low fish numbers.

Some years back, I was made aware of fresh water shrimp in South Texas. Maybe the TPWD would know something about warm water scuds.

What would be the recommended stocking rates of these critters? Are they mostly just a winter food source?

Can't say it enough, I didn't know there were more than a meager few ghost shrimp left in my 150 gal. rubbermaid. On rare occassions I would see one shrimp, though occassionally there would be this wild chase to the death. Yet upon shutting down and cleaning it, I found 100's of grass shrimp as well as crawdads. They successfully kept out of sight of the 10'+ RES that scoured the tank looking for a tasty morsel. If there's small rock and weeds, there's likely a population of little shrimp staying out of sight of predators. The stupid ones are removed from the gene pool by your predator fish. Try slowly turning over some rocks in shallow clear water and watch for 'em. If you find 1 shrimp, there's others. It finally rained in NE 'Bama. My 2 yr old sandy hole has 3' of water now. If it keeps a raining, you bet the shrimpies are going in this spring.

ok, fresh water shrimp report, put in freshwater shrimp in friends pond last winter, just small bit after dumping most in my pond, put a few dozen rainbows in in October in his pond. the crew went ice fishing yesterday, thats right, rainbow trout thru the ice and they were absolutely full to gills with freshwater shrimp.

cliffbrook, i too have a pond in iowa
where did you buy your trout from?
wondering if they will survive in my pond
currently managing 5 acre hole lmb, smb, crappie, bluegill, channels,hybrid gills, and a few hundred eyes
what all species will eat shrimp? lmb, smb?

The species that is being offered in the email is Gammarus Lacustris an Amphipod, not a true Freshwater Shrimp, as is stated.
As their supplier I find it difficult to see them offered south of the southern MO border. I have stressed that this is not a viable forage for southern climates to all that I sell to but it seems profit is more important to some. While some may survive it would be a waste of money to by these as more than immediate fish food.
They are harvested under the ice here in MN and will not long survive the acclimation into warm water.
As the inventor of the harvest equipment and having handled quite literally billions of these invertebrates for over 14 years I don't recommend purchasing these as a forage base for your ponds if you live south of the MO, AR border unless you understand they will not establish a population.
There are specific water chemistry questions that should be asked and answered before attempting to establish them as a forage.
I turn away requests each year for Gammarus due to water chemistry problems. (I don't believe in buyer beware)Profit is not an excuse to sell someone something they don't need or won't work.
Even here in MN there are ponds and lakes that will not support populations of Gammarus.
ph lower than 7.6
TA lower than 9.00
Ponds that recieve ag runoff or ponds contaminated with chemical residues that remain in the sediment are not good candidates for this invertebrate.
This is an EPA test organism and as such it is hyper-sensitive to any chemical residue.
I also recommend establishing good vegetation prior to stocking Gammarus; Pond weeds (Potamogeton spp.) or Ivy Leaved Duck Weed (Lemna Trisulca) are good choices and will not overtake your pond.
I am finishing a paper on the handling and stocking of Gammarus that should be ready for publication later this year that will be the accumulation of my 14 years of stocking and harvesting knowledge.
Until then I would be happy to answer all inquiries as to the establishing of populations as forage and I may be able to help you find a species present in your climate.
I am not saying this is not a good species to have in your ponds. I am saying there are other considerations before spending that much money.
Barry

Barry, that's very interesting. Can you suggest something for middle Georgia (between Atlanta & Birmingham,AL).
Also, SoSauty, what kind do you use.

I would suggest talking to your state university Zoology or Biology dept. or what passes for Natural Resources Dept. I believe there are true freshwater shrimp native to your area that would better match the aquatic conditions.
There also may be species of Gammarus that have adapted to your climate. (likely in the mountain lakes if they haven't dried up.)
I know there have been studies in your area as I have seen some of the papers.
I'll look in my files and see if anyone stands out.
Knowledge of the local species that will adapt to your pond is the best starting point.
If you have to get your own they also may be able to tell you where. I can help you with how to catch what you need.
Let me know what they say.
Ill helop as much as I can.
Your Ag extension office may know also.
Barry

Barry, Thanks a whole bunch for your great informative and unbiased information about Gammarus lacustris. I think even the typical ponds in northern Ohio get too hot (90-95F) for them to be successful here. I've tried to establish G.lacustris a couple times in ponds with ample vegetation (Sago pondweed, Chara, curley leaf, Vallisneria)and low numbers of predators. Is Gammarus fasciatus available for sale anywhere?.
I doubt that most local Ag extension offices even know what scuds or amphipods are. Those people are usually much more agriculture than aquatic oriented.

I agree that the true freshwater shrimp (grass, glass shrimp - Palemoneties) is probably better suited for ponds below Ohio, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska zones than G.lacustris. I get FW shrimp to live as far north as northern Ohio.
Where do you plan on publishing your experiences with the scuds?

Here are a couple good links about scuds or freshwater shrimp mentioned in this thread...

http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.asp?SpeciesID=26

http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Gammarus_fasciatus.html

I am not aware of anyone offering any Amphipods (Gammarus) for sale other than some biologic supply houses that sell individuals for study and bioassay. $1 to $5 each will cost the moon to establish a population.
One other species that comes to mind would be Hyallela Azteca.
They are considerably smaller less than 7mm but, they are much more adapatable to climatic changes in their environment.
They can even be found living in the sulfur rich waters of the hot springs in CO at temperatures above 35C.
They are native throughout the world and could likely be caught in the area of each project. Except where (again) chemical contamination is a problem.
As for the true Freshwater Shrimp they can be caught using a lift net but you need to place a ball of bait (fish or blood meal, Aquamax may also do) in the center of the net and leave it for several hours. to allow the shrimp to find and begin eating.
One shrimp will attract more and more. Lift the net slowly to avoid startling them off the net and dump into a bucket or cooler with water and reset the net.
This method also works with crayfish.
The publication of my papers will be through the University of MN Sea Grant Duluth, MN.
I also have a paper comming out about the design and construction of an Riverine Spawning system for River Minnows.
This is in effect an artificial river that I invented 10 years ago here at my hatchery in MN. It was necessary due to heavy harvest pressure from the bait industry here of the Hornyhead (Redtail) Chub. Now with the ivasive species and VHS virus it may be the salvation of the bait industry in MN and elsewhere.
Barry

Interesting stuff Barry.

And by the way, welcome to Pond Boss and thanks for participating! How about starting a thread with some photos about your "Riverine Spawning system for River Minnows" and/or about your hatchery.

I would be happy to as it unfolds.
Barry

Barry .. WELCOME!!!!
Thanks for stopping in & here's hoping you'll hang with us! We have some real fishery knowledgeable good people on here & hopefully looks like we've gained one more!
It really amazes me how much all you smart guys on here are so willing to give & help! I think it says something about character.
THANKS!

Thanks for the welcome and I will contribute as much as I can.
I really believe what my signature says.
If we (humans) are to survive the next great evolution of the species we need to find motivations other than profit for bettering knowledge.
Barry