Thanks for the kind comments, Ed. The Pond Boss crowd is a lot of fun.
Actually, ewest is tracking down scads of information on hybrid bluegills and their genetics. He knows more than me. :-)
I do have another bluegill research project right now, and I'll let the cat out of the bag on a recent thought that I am having. Working with bluegills in Nebraska and South Dakota, am I starting to wonder if they don't primarily have a single spawn. In our NE study, we had one lake one year where they clearly had two spawns. However, most of the other lakes are primarily a single spawn, with a little tail of bluegill fry produced later in the year. This is all pure speculation, and I need to find time to dig into past research reports at other northern locations. However, single-spawning bluegill sure might change the "prey production" thoughts of our management strategies in the north country, couldn't they?
John -- what will keep the gravel from just sinking into the silt on the bottom of the pond?? I'm not certain, but I think it might do so.
