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Depending on the exact time of the year we have a GBH that's a regular visitor but it'll leave pretty much as soon as we step outside. We're about 75'-100' away at that point.

We also get a Green Heron once in a great while. Had one stop by a few weeks back and when I went outside it simply walked over to the far side of the pond.

Finally, had a snowy egret a while back too. I got some pics but was pretty far away since I didn't think it'd stick around. It went to the other side of the pond while I put the inflatable boat in the water to do some maintenance but I was able to get within 10'-15' a couple of times before it got tired of the intrusion and left.

We too have killdeer depending on the time of year but I didn't realize they would go fishing. I figured they were just out there for the water.

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I could be wrong on that. Maybe the killdeer do not fish but they sure do spend a lot of time along the bank if they don't. They may just be eating bugs.

Edit: I looked it up. They are shore birds but this information does not say they eat fish. Crayfish and snails though.
killdeer

Last edited by snrub; 09/21/18 05:26 PM.

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Originally Posted By: Tom M


Finally, had a snowy egret a while back too. I got some pics but was pretty far away since I didn't think it'd stick around. It went to the other side of the pond while I put the inflatable boat in the water to do some maintenance but I was able to get within 10'-15' a couple of times before it got tired of the intrusion and left.


It's important to drive these birds off before you run an errand. We should always leave with no egrets!

Last edited by anthropic; 09/22/18 12:09 AM.

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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On a serious note, finally got water line set up to mobile home on our pond. Septic tank done, too. Now for electric hookup!

Cool weather felt great, fish were very active around feeders. Still no sign of HSB, but did see two Tilapia take sinking pellets. Seemed more skittish about surface feeding than LMB and CNBG, don't know if this is species characteristic.


Last edited by anthropic; 09/22/18 12:19 AM.

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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I normally hydrate my feed before going out to feed, but yesterday I decided to throw it dry. I've noticed my BG are very enthusiastic the first few seconds then tend to feed more subsurface after that, as the pellets sink faster.

Since the feed was dry yesterday, they didn't feed as hard as they were waiting for sinkers. What I did find out is that I have a few more BH than I thought. Where I normally only see 4 or 5 between 10-12 inches, yesterday they were forced to come up to get the pellets. I saw around a dozen ranging from 6 to 12 inches. They are virtual vacuum cleaners. Scarfing up 3 or 4 pellets at a time.


.10 surface acre pond, 10.5 foot deep. SW LA. The epitome of a mutt pond. BG, LMB, GSF, RES, BH, Warmouth, Longear Sunfish, Gambusia,Mud Minnows, Crappie, and now shiners!!...I subscribe!!
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Today water hit my new pond for the first time. I doubt it will get above the dead pool by spring, but we will see how the native soils hold up.


Brad
1.5 acre pond with LMB, BG, BCP, CC, FHM and lots of crayfish, unknown type. .5 acre pond with FHM and GSF. 12 acre irrigation reservoir that I don't know what to do with. New pond, roughly 1.5 acres. Pond Boss Subscriber.
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All I did today was watch from my front door as a thunderstorm reminiscent of hurricane Harvey completely inundated the pond. The banks are overflowing into the yard and as it drains off I'm watching thousands of GAMs, FHM and small panfish swim out with it.

Sure am glad I don't have a ton of money tied up in stocked fish.


.10 surface acre pond, 10.5 foot deep. SW LA. The epitome of a mutt pond. BG, LMB, GSF, RES, BH, Warmouth, Longear Sunfish, Gambusia,Mud Minnows, Crappie, and now shiners!!...I subscribe!!
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Wish you could send some of that excess rain up here, Mike. My pond level has risen some, but still about 16-18 inches lower than full pool.

Interestingly, I'm seeing the same thing Bob Lusk mentioned in the electroshocking video tonight: recently spawned LMB in the 3 to 6 inch range. Don't usually find that happening in the fall, wonder what the trigger was?

Of course, we all remember the abrupt shift from winter to summer earlier this year, with a very brief in between spring. Perhaps female bass didn't have the opportunity to spawn they normally get during the spring, as temps went from too cold to too hot abruptly, so more eggs available now.


Last edited by anthropic; 09/26/18 10:28 PM.

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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That is weird because I have lots of 3.5-4" SMB that I have no other explanation other than a late spawn. They are not starving and look to be in good health.


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If I could send it to you I surely would. We need to dry out some as it's rained almost every day and forecast for 60% chance till probably Monday. Luckily it drains off pretty fast. Have to keep an eye on Toledo Bend. I'm sure you've heard their reputation for flooding everyone out downstream.

I've heard that LMB can have late season spawns even into fall. But it's usually after unseasonably cool weather that drops water temps early on then warms back up.


.10 surface acre pond, 10.5 foot deep. SW LA. The epitome of a mutt pond. BG, LMB, GSF, RES, BH, Warmouth, Longear Sunfish, Gambusia,Mud Minnows, Crappie, and now shiners!!...I subscribe!!
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It was a crazy winter, spring this past year. I had lmb on the nest in May, where it is usually late Feb or early March. A may spawn might give up some 4" lmb in early fall. I think. Another thing is the rain at my place this year has been scattered out but I have seen more this year than the past two yrs where I was in a drought at the farm. Pond is pretty much full right now.


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After that deluge of rain yesterday I was interested in what changes it made to the pond. Visibly has been reduced to about 16". The surface temp at 3:30pm (still cloudy and threatening rain) is 83*. Ph reading is 8.0.

I walked the ditches along the property where the pond drains and saw a lot of tiny minnows scurrying around, but no evidence of anything substantial in the ditch. There still appears to be a lot of GAMS and FHM in the pond, tho. Feeding today was also on track. While I was out also cleaned off the grate covering the overflow pipe. It was completely clogged with FA.


.10 surface acre pond, 10.5 foot deep. SW LA. The epitome of a mutt pond. BG, LMB, GSF, RES, BH, Warmouth, Longear Sunfish, Gambusia,Mud Minnows, Crappie, and now shiners!!...I subscribe!!
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Trying to make lemonade from lemons. Have had a beaver trying to clog my exit pipe by throwing pickerel weed plants into the water control box. have been using the plants in my newest wetlands and pond to get some cover established. The beaver has saved me a lot of digging.

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I just noticed I also have 4" LMB in my old pond. Noticed a half dozen of them yesterday in the shallows.

Gobs of 4" SMB in my RES/SMB pond, along with larger YOY.

The picture was on Monday night, not today. But I thought it was kind of cool. Heavy rain about 5 minutes after that picture.

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Last edited by snrub; 09/27/18 11:15 PM.

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The 4"-6" CC I stocked this May are taking feed already. That is a record.
Usually it's the following spring before I see them again.
That really bumps up my harvest schedule.
I'll be having CC fishing parties this time next year.
I need to clean my feeders with bleach water. They are getting stinky.

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Snrub - Any idea how the LMB got in?

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I'm losing the battle with invasive giant (mutant ninja) snails. Actually they don't seem to cause any problem but just seem to coat the bottom in the shallows. I'm guessing they came in when the neighbor 'kindly' bucket stocked my pond with the remnants of his aquarium which included adult snails. Every year I have taken out a few 5 gallon bucket loads of adult snails by hand.

Now they tend to stay in about a foot of water, not many out deeper than that, and as we get high water after a rain they go into the shallows more. I had 2 overflows of my pond with heavy rains this month and many of the adults stayed stranded up in the grass when the water receded.

I figured as my YP (and RES the few I have) got larger they would eat the tiny snails (they bear live young, so the babies got to be small enough for a large YP to eat?) But this year apparently the YP didn't get the memo because my shallows are must loaded with 1/2" to 3/4" diameter tiny snails. The adults by comparison are about 2" or more.

The tiny snails have very soft thin shells so I'm sure the RES could eat them. Once in the shallows you would think the coons would wade in and feast on them, but no. Do owls or raptors eat these things?

If I new a way to get them to crawl out of their shells or soften their shells I would throw the snails (minus the shell) back in and they would be quick treats for my larger YP

So I raked and raked yesterday and the shore looks like it hailed snails. When they die off it stinks and we get flies...

Oh well, there are at least 10,000 less snails in the pond now.

Is there such a thing as a selective 'snail.i.cide'?

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FYI - Snails cannot crawl out of their shells.

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Heck sell them on EBay! Or smash them and throw the back in deeper water to be eaten by the fish

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Originally Posted By: RAH
Snrub - Any idea how the LMB got in?


The LMB fingerlings I saw were in my old refurbished pond, not in the RES/SMB pond. The ponds are close to each other, about a hundred feet apart. But they are separated by a tall enough terrace the waters should never allow fish to transfer from one BOW to another. I have 5 different ponds so I differentiate them with names. Main, sediment, forage, old and RES/SMB.

To me the LMB fingerlings look just about like the SMB fingerlings from the shore. At 4" I sure could not tell the difference between them looking at them when they are swimming in the water. I tried just a little to catch one of the small LMB to look at it but no luck. I can easily catch the 4" SMB fingerlings on a small jig but I have lots of them so it is easier. I have seen much smaller numbers of the 4" LMB in the old pond. Saw some earlier in the year during summer and again just recently. Not sure what to think of the spawns. Either they were spread out or the fish just did not grow for a couple months.

Last edited by snrub; 09/28/18 09:49 AM.

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I misread your post - Thanks

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Scared away a GB Heron and two cormorants. Getting increasingly discouraged about these two small ponds.

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This afternoon I am headed up to my land (1.5 hr drive) and will set four cloverleafs to continue work on thinning out the bullhead it got infected with, and also set some minnow traps in the minnow pond to toss them into the big pond for grins. Also toss in a few handfulls of fish chow. Then I am headed to a deer stand for the evening. Going to work on pond, deer stands, duck blinds, decoys, etc all weekend.

Last edited by Redonthehead; 09/28/18 10:28 AM.

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Originally Posted By: John Fitzgerald
Scared away a GB Heron and two cormorants. Getting increasingly discouraged about these two small ponds.


I just got back from chasing off a cormorant scout, a flock of geese and a white colored young GBH. It looked like bird city out there this morning with the addition of a flock of killdeers and an eagle circling overhead, which I left alone (saw the eagle get a fish a few days ago).

It must be migratory season again. smirk Guess if I was into birds it would be wonderful.


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I don't know if I am going to continue to feed after this season. With the extreme depredation, cost of feed, and difficulty of obtaining good feed, I think I will just keep the pond areas cleaned up for their aesthetics, and an area to get a good walk and to sit a bit and see nature. I still haven't found anyone to stop the first pond from leaking down to about 30" from full. No one seems to want a small job like that with the huge amount of construction of all kinds going on in NW Arkansas at this time.

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