UPDATE: After initial setup and stocking it showed a lot of promise. Adult fatheads nibbled on the pellets and didn't require any additional aeration. After a couple weeks I saw that the zoo-plankton population exploded in the tank and there were critters in every cubic inch of water. Once it got warm enough I noticed eggs under one of the scrap wood chunks. (Apparently I only ended up with one male because of the 8 chunks in the tank only one ever has had eggs.) Anyhow this 4"x8" chunk has had hundreds of eggs on it for probably the last 2 months straight.

When the first of the fry started hatching they made quick work of the zoo-plankton and within a few days the tank was picked clean. I was hoping that the fry could get by pecking on the regular size pellets but it didn't take long to see dead fry in the tank. I then shifted my strategy to netting out as may fry as I could and putting them in the pond where they would have more forage. I have transplanted many hundreds of them so far. I also tried the get a zoo-plankton bloom going by adding granular yard fertilizer to the tank. It has given me very green water but not a abundance of critters. I think the fry are getting them before they have a chance to repopulate. It has also made netting the fry more difficult since they are hard to see in green water.

3 days ago I found that they have stopped laying eggs. I guess it is due to either the extreme heat we are having or my breeding male kicked the bucket(the females wore him out). I still have fry in the tank and I am curious how big they will get if I just leave it on autopilot for a while. I am hoping that some of them are getting big enough to utilize the pellets for food by pecking on them. I tried grinding some pellets into powder and putting that in the tank but it wasn't something I have been consistent with.

So far this experiment has shown me that
1) a dozen brooders is more than enough to provide way more fry than what my system can feed naturally
2) feeding the adults is easy, feeding the fry is the hard part.
3) anything more than a few dozen fathead brooders in a tank this size would be overkill

Next year if I mess with this tank again I think I will put it on the side of the pond above the pond water level. I can pump the water in the tank then when I start to see fry drain the water back into the pond and along with it the fry. The adults will swim against the current so I don't think I will lose them if I leave a few inches in the tank before stopping the drain. I can repeat this many times to keep a flow of fathead fry going into the pond. Raising large numbers of fry to adulthood in the tank is going to take more than the $2 investment (brooders) I made on my setup. Tilapia fry may be easier to feed if they can make a living with you chucking FA in the tank.

Last edited by DJT; 06/22/10 11:51 PM.
Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?