Ok, thanks for the information!
Somehow, I did not realize that HSB didn't reproduce in small ponds, so they are now at the top of my list for the top end predator. My pond is 17' deep, so I'm hoping that with a little aeration, it should keep the pond a tad bit cooler for the HSB to survive. I won't do any fishing for them when the water temp is above 80F or so (unless I'm going to eat them) so I can try to avoid killing them.
I think my pond stocking strategy will be something like the following:
1) 100 larger CNBG stocked in the fall of '07
2) 50 RES stocked in the fall of '07
3) 20 or so CC stocked in the fall of '07
4) A handful of HSB stocked in the spring of '08 (not sure how many)
Then, if I get any issues with FA or Weeds, I'll put in some Tilapia as needed. Does that seem reasonable?
Then, every year (or maybe every other year), I'll add some new HSB as necessary to keep a couple of different sizes going. I'll also add CC as required as well. I don't have any spawning structure for CC, so I'm hoping that they won't try to take over the pond.
I went out to my pond yesterday, and I have a ton of little fry in the shallow areas. I’m not sure if they are FHM or GSH since they are still just eyes and tail, but I’m glad they are starting to reproduce. Since I put the FHM and GSH in the pond, I haven’t seen any of them at all. I was hoping that they didn’t get washed out of the pond with all the rain we’ve had.
Again, thanks for the info!
