And by the way, even if you didn't buy tilapia from me I'd still like your comments. ----- I purchased Tilapia nilotica from Southeastern Pond Management, and they were stocked, 170 lb. averaging 1 lb each in my 13.5 acre pond, in early June. They seem to have thrived, although they became difficult to see once I got a good phytoplankton bloom in late June. I do see good numbers of little guys trapped in a small pool below my spillway.
I had a pretty big filamentous algae problem when the Tilapia were stocked, and they initially reduced it by about 90% in a matter of weeks. Since the phytoplankton bloom reached ideal levels (18-24" visibility), the amount of filamentous has stayed about the same at 10-20% of usual amounts for this time of year. Perhaps the Tilapia get a good deal of their caloric requirement from what they are filtering and don’t eat as much (?) I have no aquatic plants above the level of algae and below the level of buttonwoods, so I can’t comment on weed control.
I have found no dead Tilapia since they were stocked. A few have been caught on worms and crickets while fishing for BG. These were returned to the pond.
I will definitely want to be at the top of the list to stock them again next year. Lou
