Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Raising Forage and Bait Video of a Blue Tilapia Pre-Spawn Dance and Spawn

Several comments:
(1) Interesting videos Rainman, that really gives us an upclose and personal view of Tilapia spawning behavior. I feel so dirty now.

(2) Is there a reason that you don't place the male and female tilapia in a separate tank so that you don't have predation by the other tilapia?

(3) "Mush Mouth" should be an example to all female tilapia everwhere, proof that you don't have to be a beauty to get some sweet tilapia lovin.

(4) I think I once played a card game in which one-eyed tilapia were wild, Texas Go Fish Holdem or something like that.

(4) I think I once played a card game in which one-eyed tilapia were wild, Texas Go Fish Holdem or something like that.

As for #4, that musta been at the last PB Conf.

Those look just like the tilapia I put in my pond. I went to Alabama and brought them home in a cooler. But, the guy I bought them from did not know the name of them. Mine are all white. He said he thought they were Rockymountain White but, he was not sure. They have been in my pond since June and so far I have not seen any yoy the smallest ones in the pond are bigger than your hand. Should I be seeing some small ones say like 2-3 in.? I have also not seen any of them on the bed. It does seem like I have more than the 35 I put in. But, no small ones. I am wondering if the bass are keeping them down. I have a 1acre pond with 75 1-2lb HSB. And I put in 75 largemouth the same time as the tilapia. Any comments welcome.

It was, I didn't want to mention the location because I though we'd sound like a bunch of pond nerds.

Oh and buy the way, Theo is amazing at bluffing. He's got an unreadable Go Fish face, you just can't read him at all. Kind of drag playing Go Fish with this bunch of guys though. I slapped down a "four of a kind" set of fish and got a fifteen minute disertation on how one of the cards looked more like hybrid pink cartoon fish than pure pink cartoon fish and therefore my set was invalid. That started an entire debate about the likelyhood of the hybridization between a pink cartoon fish and a red cartoon fish. Next thing you know Bill Cody and Ewest are debating the merits of various research studes on pink/red cartoon fish hybridization. Bruce is saying he doesn't care whether they are pink, red, yellow, green or blue cartoon fish, what ever they are he'll outfish all of the rest of us. We think about arguing that point but realize that it's completely true so why bother. TomG is ordering another beer. Heybud is considering new pond names and immediatley rejects my Rockin Monkey Goby name, with very little consideration I might add. Nate is trying to figure out how to film the cartoon fish under the cartoon water. Brettski is busy photochopping yet ANOTHER photo of me. FMB is doing a Caddy Shack impression. Sunil is calling FMB a freak while at the same time trying to collect BISA dues from Aaron. And don't get me started on Aaron, who apparently has never been told that SMB won't survive in the Arizona heat and is willy nilly raising them there anyway.

And Bob Lusk is sitting in the corner wondering what in the world he did to deserve this cast of characters.

And that's only the parts of the evening that I can remember.

Tilapia don't really have a stomach but more of a "bulb". They eat and digest constantly and have a food conversion ratio of around 1.4 to 1, meaning they grow a pound for every 1.4 pounds eaten---Some studies put it closer to 1.1 to 1. Anyhoo, this conversion means that in the unlimited food supply envoirnment of a pond versus feeding, Tilapia fry, upon emerging permanantly from the mothers protective mouth, can and will grow rapidly, several inches in the first couple months. The young are prey for virtually everything in the pond including the tilapia.

Are you hitting the Nyquil again?????

Jeff you certainly live in the right state but I think your creative imagination is being wasted in the accounting business. That is unless your answer to clients when asked what 1 + 1 equals is the whispered question of "What would you LIKE it to equal?"

You are hilarious and paint a great picture with words! Do you write for Two And A Half Men?

Two and a Half Men is one of my most favorite TV shows. That and Big Bang Theory. Back in my martial arts/weight lifting days I worked out once with Charlie Sheen in a small gym in Lahiana, Maui. Unfortuantely I got addicted to Nyquil, developed some other bad habits, and stopped working out. Now I'm a bean counter and he's a big TV and movie star. Stupid, stupid Nyquil.