Thanks for the input. I'm guessing that the increase in smaller yearling fish I've noticed is due to several factors: Removing bass, stocking more gills and other species, and sinking brushy cover that this pond lacked. The perch and crappie that had already been present in this pond were big and few in numbers. I'm sure this was due to the stockpiled bass. I know the crappie can be tricky, so I'll keep an eye on them and remove a bunch if they look like they are out of control. My garden can always use some fish fertilizer so I'm more than willing to take out a bunch of small ones. Ice fishing it this winter I only caught one crappie and it was a nice one. Caught a few nice perch and only a few small ones so they look like they are doing well. I've noticed a slight decrease in average bluegill size compared to last year, with the biggest ones being a bit smaller. This, I'm sure, is also a sign that I've shifted the balance a little more over to the forage side of the scale. I guess the only way to tell is to fish for bass when the water gets a bit warmer. Last year I could catch about 40 bass in an hour, all smaller than 12" and skinny. If they are as easy and numerous to catch and still starving then I'll pull another hundred or so. A friend of mine owns a 1/3rd acre pond that is so silted in that it's only about 2 to 3 feet deep and has no fish. I plan to dump some fatheads in there to breed threw the summer and then net them out for the other pond. Any idea on how many to stock? Do you think they'll survive in a black sludge pond like this? What about golden shiners?
