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New 3/4 acre pond just starting to fill. About a foot of water in bottom now. Plenty of concrete structure in the bottom for them. Also rip rap around entire border. Will eventually stock SMB, YP and RES and forage bait. How many softshell crayfish from smith creek should I stock to get a breeding population going?

Last edited by xraytrapper; 09/27/16 08:22 AM.

.75 acre pond dug in September 2016. YP, HBG, HSB, SMB, and RES.
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Better hurry if you want to stock them this fall. Smith Creek doesn't ship after September.


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With no predators and plenty of rip rap you can save money up front and let nature do its thing for reproduction. Crayfish with no predation and a good habitat will multiply like crazy.

TJ once said he stocked 75 crayfish I think and in short order had nearly unlimited supply. I think he said he trapped around 2000 and counting?

If you stock crays, forage and want natural reproduction you need to give the cycle of crayfish young to be born and grow up and reproduce again. That means stocking any other species besides crayfish no sooner than spring of 2018.

So if you are patient, the minimum order of crayfish from Smith's would be fine with me.

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Talked to them last week and they will ship into October a little as long as supplies last. Planning on ordering Thursday to have them for Friday.
Do you need to acclimate them to the water at all like other fish?


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Slowly acclimate crayfish by exchanging water if water temperatures are noticeably different to the hand touch comparison.


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Thanks guys. Probably will go with 75. Will put some FHM in this fall yet and more FHM, GSH, RES and HBG in spring 2017. May stock 3 different age class of YP fall 2017 unless you guys think to do perch in spring also. Then SMB in 2018. And maybe some HSB in 2018 if all else is doing well.


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Would it be worth the chance to have them ship me 25 or 50 papershells to South Ga? I have a pond with some small rip rap, about 30 tons of small crushed rock and minimal vegetation around the pond. I am putting 1,000 2 inch BG in next month and bass next spring?


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I have a about a half acre size tank around Pflugerville it has lots of moss and grass in it what are your thoughts on stocking it with Grass Carp to help control the growth the tank currently has some bass and catfish in it !

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We stocked these and in two years you can't turn over a rock with out finding one.

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Originally Posted By: chambers270
Would it be worth the chance to have them ship me 25 or 50 papershells to South Ga? I have a pond with some small rip rap, about 30 tons of small crushed rock and minimal vegetation around the pond. I am putting 1,000 2 inch BG in next month and bass next spring?


C270,

I'm not a pro but I'm not sure from your description that you have a habitat PSC (papershell crawfish) will thrive in once predators are introduced. They need lots of places to get away from predators like large rip rap, boulder piles, etc.

Just my 1 cent


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DonoBBD #456705 09/28/16 08:38 PM
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Originally Posted By: DonoBBD
We stocked these and in two years you can't turn over a rock with out finding one.


how many is there donobbd?
I just ordered 75 today. should be here next week. they will have over a full year to multiply until any larger predator fish will be introduced.
guy at smithcreek said they were starting to get low, so order soon if you want any.


.75 acre pond dug in September 2016. YP, HBG, HSB, SMB, and RES.
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Those pictures are of the same bin. I think at most 50-80. Our pond is only at most one acre when at full pool but have rock all away around.

The first year we saw the big ones but now rarely see the big ones but hundreds of yearlings every year.

When we clean perch in the spring of the year they will almost all have a crayfish in them that is about 1.5"s long. I gave the crayfish one year head start and that is all they will need for you. If your going with bass that could be a different story. Bass are crayfish eating machines.


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Thanks dono. I will have SMB but not for at least a year. I have quite a few big broken concrete piles and will have rip rap all around border of pond and some bigger rip rap on one shorter side. Hope it's enough to give a chance at sustaining a good population.


.75 acre pond dug in September 2016. YP, HBG, HSB, SMB, and RES.
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I just ordered 100 crays from Smith Creek to put in my pond. They were nice and informative, he told me that by adding them now I should be fine by the time the LMB (2 inch)are added next spring. I also plan to put GSH in to help offset the bass attack on the crays.


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I might have a source for White River Crawfish (Procambarus acutus). Does anybody have an opinion on whether they would be suitable for stocking a N. Illinois pond with SMB, WE and a few LMB as top predators? I have good crawfish habitat already in place. I understand they burrow but that the burrows are relatively shallow (30 CM) and I don't have a dam to worry about. I also understand that they get large enough for table fare which would be a plus for us.

Thanks for any advice, opinions or experience you can share.

Last edited by Bill D.; 01/30/17 07:30 PM.

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If you have adult bass the crawfish will be snacks.

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That's the plan. My research so far indicates the adults can be 4 to 5 inches (not including pinchers) so I want to make sure that 14 inch LMB (and smaller) along with the SMB and WE can control them and keep them from overpopulating. On the flip side, I am worried they may not be able to establish a thriving population even though I have good habitat for them. I understand there are no guarantees on the outcome, just trying to hedge my bet with as much knowledge as I can find on them.

Last edited by Bill D.; 01/30/17 07:57 PM. Reason: Clarification

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Bump. No experience or knowledge anybody can share in the forum with White River Crays?


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Bill, last spring I purchased 75 + lbs of crawfish from a local grower. He raises White River Craws along with Red Swamps. Grown here for the table, but he has several customers like me that add them to their lmb ponds as a snack. My experience, these craws were large in size and today as I walk around the pond, I see a few small crawfish holes. Very few holes are large enough to accommodate these large crawfish that were added. That is my experience with them and most likely not much help to you. But they were some really nice looking crawfish!!


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Thanks for the input Tracy,


Sounds like your experience is in line with literature predictions for White River Craws of small burrows. Do you think you got a mix of Swamps and White River or only White River? Do you think 14 inch LMB are big enough to eat the adults you've seen?


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Bill, the supplier said he had both crawfish. When I drove up to his place, I saw what I might describe as a cypress tree swamp. I don't know how one might separate the two because they will travel across land. I did not see where he had one place for one type and another place for another type of crawfish. As far as the size, all craws were in the 5 to 6" size. What I would call thick and heavy crawfish. The type we look for here when eating boiled crawfish at local restaurants. We do not always find this size when eating at those places. A lot of size depends on the time of year and the supplier. Now as far as lmb or smb eating this size craw, I will say that the majority of my lmb do not have large mouths but really nice sized bodies or RW. These lmb are not that old less than two years of age. But I believe they can tear a crawfish up smile When they attack a craw the fish will tear off the pinchers and or rip the tail off, lmb are aggressive and so are smb. Some of my lmb can and will eat the whole crawfish. They like eating crawfish, and so do I. smile

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Bill, do you intend for the largemouth to be the main sport fish?


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I once had about a 10 inch LMB in a tank. When I fed it craws, even large ones, it would rip them apart and eat them if it couldn't swallow them whole. A dozen or so every couple days. It would also eat a dozen feeder goldfish in less than a half minute. I kept it through one winter, and then put it back in the pond as it got too much of a hassle to keep fed.

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Xraytrapper stated a small mouth, yellow perch, and RES.

I personally would leave the bass out for a few years first. Let the perch get a couple spawns in first too and the crayfish.

Small mouth later. I my self might add small mouth later but for now just perch and a few walleye. It would be fun to catch lunker small mouth.


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Originally Posted By: John F
I once had about a 10 inch LMB in a tank. When I fed it craws, even large ones, it would rip them apart and eat them if it couldn't swallow them whole. A dozen or so every couple days. It would also eat a dozen feeder goldfish in less than a half minute. I kept it through one winter, and then put it back in the pond as it got too much of a hassle to keep fed.


Thanks for the info John,

I guess I never considered that LMB could actually dismember crays.


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