Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Evaluating and adjusting fish populations Walleye still small

It is common in my experience for walleye to grow slow sometimes very slowly in ponds. This could be due to several reasons. 1. lack of proper forage, 2. BCP are compressed shape with spines and this is not preferred food of WE. Consumable but not preferred, not easily located, nor easily encountered - caught, thus the WE do not eat much. 3. it is possible the fish were graded (sorted for size) before you bought them and you got the smaller group comprised of mostly male WE. Males grow a lot slower than the females. My experience is WE do not grow well nor eat a lot of pelagic pond fish such as young BG, BCP or other fish that will inhabit more open water. WE like/prefer YP or minnows that inhabit areas of bottom habitat. IMO you will have to think of WE in your pond as a bonus fish and not a major predator force at least to the BCP. Your WE are likely eating more young YP than young BCP.

IMO the walleye are not growing slow due to brightness and clear water because the walleye could easily feed as dusk, dawn, and during moonlight nights which are normal feeding times for WE esp in clear water habitats.

To better control your young blk crappie (BCP) for your goals, I would use hybrid striped bass (HSB) assuming they are legal in NY. ewest has a very good article in May-June 2014 Pond Boss magazine: "Crappie - The Enigma". In the article he discusses how some have discovered that HSB can be effective at successfully controlling crappie populations. HSB and young crappie are open water fish so when they are together the predation can easily occur.