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Pumpkinseed for snail control update…

The goal in stocking pumpkinseed sunfish (PS) in our pond was twofold. One, they are a really pretty fish and bring back memories of my childhood; catching them in rivers and streams in central Indiana. (My mom cooked hundreds of 5 inch PS!). Primarily though the goal was snail control.

Some history…

I stocked 100 small (1 to 2 inch mostly and a few 2.5) PS in the fall of 2014.

In 2015 we did not catch any PS and I saw no fingerlings in the minnow traps.

Several very small snails observed when skimming vegetation late summer 2016.

In 2016 we started catching a few 5 to 6 inch PS by hook and large numbers of 1.5 inch in late summer in the minnow traps.

Background:…

There are also BG and a few HBG in the pond. The number of BG making it to the 3 to 6 inch size class is small

We will continue to harvest the few remaining large CC and LMB 15 inches or larger

I know that snails are not the preferred forage for PS. They would much rather eat aquatic insects, zoo plankton, etc. An old Dr. Willis article provides that you need to have BG stocked along with the PS as the BG will hog the preferred forage, which forces the PS to target the snails.

So I THINK, I have the right ingredients in place to maybe get the PS to start controlling the snails. Hopefully, the now reproducing PS population, along with harvest of CC and LMB (only a few left of each), will take some of the pressure off the BG allowing them to get a few more recruits into the 3 to 6 inch size class. More BG should put more pressure on the forage base for the PS and possibly get them to move towards eating more snails. I may be walking a fine line between getting enough BG to force the PS to eat snails and an over population of PS, BG or both. I will be watching the BG and PS populations closely to see if the predator harvest plan needs tweaking.

There are a whole bunch of IFs here. It is an interesting experiment.

Comments, constructive criticism or suggestions would be appreciated!