Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Suckers

Hi, I have a small, isolated, spring fed Trout pond. Should I stock it with suckers to help keep the pond clean?

White suckers managed to get into our pond. I am not sure if they keep the pond clean but they do make it muddy. We have been fishing them out every time we catch one they come out of the pond.

My thoughts are that they made into the pond with the minnow stocking.

Suckers do not eat organic muck, leaves, and organic junk in the bottom of the pond or lake. Organic materials eaten would be unintentionally ingested. They do search the sediments for all types of invertebrates, critters, and worms, etc as food items. In this research study where they looked at food of white suckers who lived in the upper, middle, and deep zones of thermally stratified clear water lakes. Prominent food items were Hyalella azteca (scuds) and the chironomid larvae (midge - dipteran) Heterotrissocladius, Djalmabatista and Procladius. Despite differences in relative densities of benthic invertebrates among thermal zones of the two lakes, suckers in neither lake foraged exclusively on prey of epilimnetic (upper zone) origin. Suckers captured in the metalimnia (middle zone) foraged on invertebrates that were common to all three thermal zones. And, only 0–4% of the suckers captured in the hypolimnia (deep zone) of the two lakes contained prey that were unique to the epilimnia. Suckers caught in the hypolimnia mainly consumed deep water invertebrates; 83% of the suckers foraged in the metalimnion and hypolimnion (coolder zones)....

Thanks!

I think I will pass on the suckers, but what can I put in there to help clean up the trout waste? I heard something about a type of snail? any ideas?

Snails as a part of the life cycle can promote parasites in the trout. I would pass also on snails. Consider good aeration and bacterial additions (sewage digesting) to help reduce fish waste? One option I suggest is to not over stock the trout numbers and accumulate high carrying capacities in the pond so less fish waste is produced. Lots of fish waste contributes to reduced water quality and stresses the trout. When you are growing high carrying capacity of fish or trout, one needs to resort to fish farm (hatchery) management methods to deal with excessive fish waste. It is a different management style compared to sport fish management especially when dealing with high water quality needed by trout.