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#491244 06/04/18 11:25 AM
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We just bought a new house with a 3/4 acre to 1 acre pond. It has tons of frogs and turtles, but no fish since they had to drain it recently to install an overflow system to prevent flooding. Anyways, I love doing some fishing and would like to stock the pond but I don't know what I should do exactly. The pond is 6 feet deep, with shallow edges, some algae, and very weedy around almost all the edges. The bottom is mostly sand and mud with a few small grass patches. I was thinking to put 25 smallmouth bass, 8 black bullheads, and 75 bluegill. Also was going to put 5 pounds of fat heads and some shiners in there. Any objections? Should this work?

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I'm not qualified enough to make suggestions for stocking in your area, but I'll bet your going to raise some eyebrows talking about putting in bullheads.

Unless blacks have entirely different reproductive traits, they tend to overpopulate and don't get very big to begin with.

Welcome to the club and I am sure you'll be getting much better advice shortly...you've come to the right place!


Fish on!,
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The mix that you suggest might cause others to kill off their pond and start over:) Bullheads are considered an undesirable species and smallmouth will likely not keep bluegill or bullheads from overcrowding. What do you want from your stocked fish? That will help with making suggestions. For example, my first pond is the standard LMB/BG pond and my second pond is a SMB/yellow-perch pond, with both ponds also having red-ear sunfish and FHM. I will be doing an experiment in my newly built 3rd pond with blue catfish once I get the first level and second level forage fish established. Throwing in FHM now to reproduce is a safe bet so your next fish have plenty to eat.

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Recent PB articles on northern pond stocking recommend a combination of SMB, pumpkinseed, THM, GSH, and maybe YP. BG are too prolific for SMB to control well; if you want them you'll probably need LMB.


7ac 2015 CNBG RES FHM 2016 TP FLMB 2017 NLMB GSH L 2018 TP & 70 HSB PK 2019 TP RBT 2020 TFS TP 25 HSB 250 F1,L,RBT -206 2021 TFS TP GSH L,-312 2022 GSH TP CR TFS RBT -234, 2023 BG TP TFS NLMB, -160




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YP and PS can also stunt if not managed properly. It is not as common as BG stunting but is a possible issue. Adequate predation by fish and man are needed to manage most species.
















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Thanks for all the quick responses guys- will take your advice smile

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Really just looking for a large variety of fish that can live together and will be good fishing, always heard smallmouths fought harder than largies thats why I was considering them. Crappie are a big no no, they populate way to fast unless their hybrids and hybrids will not reproduce which is what i'm looking for. White bass/perch are the same way.

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Ok I think i'll plan on pumpkins then, depending on what the local fish stocker has in store. Thanks!

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If you find a pumkinseed sunfish supplier, please post who it is.

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I will try to find someone! If pumpkin seeds aren't available, what else would you recommend? Shiners or red ears? As of right now, the food chain i'm looking at looks something like this from top to bottom: Smallmouth bass, shiners or some sort of small sunfish, maybe another fish like yellow perch or a few flatheads?, and A LOT of fathead minnows and frogs and tadpoles.

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RAH, found someone who does. Ralph's wholesale bait has tons of fish to choose from, including pumpkin seed, at least that's what the Michigan DNR website says.

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If I could find pumkinseed, I'd use them rather than black crappie for the blue catfish forage. Thanks for the lead!

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I own a few and manage several client SMB fisheries, here's my advice.

QTY is dependent on fishery goals
25-50 SMB/acre
250-500 PS/acre
150-250 YP/acre


Stock GS and FHM 6 to preferably 12 mos ahead of SMB. Stock PS and SMB simultaneously to help prevent PS from getting ahead of SMB and becoming management issue. I would suggest supplemental feeding program as all these species will feed train and you'll see 300% increase in growth.

Do not stock FHC or BH.

6' max depth could be subject to winter kill in MI...something to keep in mind. Shallow ponds in Northern NE winter kill often, and you're far North of us. I'd be diligent in keeping snow from accumulating on ice during winter for long stretches of time and/or consider aeration system.

Feel free to post questions or reach out directly to me anytime happy to help.


Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after. ~ Henry David Thoreau

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Do you have pumkinseed suppliers in NE?

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Originally Posted By: RAH
Do you have pumkinseed suppliers in NE?


I don't believe so - but I've never inquired nor included them in stocking strategies for Midwest clients as RES is perfectly suited for our fishery goals - less fecund, attain much larger sizes, and survive NE winters well. PS is one's only option once you get much further North of us due to winter temps, we're rather the last stop for the RES train heading North. PS may be the only option in MI, but could have sworn someone on the forum from MI once stated they had RES population...maybe I'm dreaming.


Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after. ~ Henry David Thoreau

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Next time (the final time) they drain it, I may have to go in and dig some deep holes. Thanks for the advice!


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