Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Creating the food chain My tilapia won't die

Im Building a 3-6 Acre pond in deep south texas. Tilpia here live year-round. Should i use them or avoid them if my goal is a trophy bass lake?

I think it would be a good idea. For example all of those lakes in Mexico that have big bass also have tilapia. Such as El salto and many others.

Do you want BG ?

I have a bass tank in South Texas (not far from Pearsall) as well. I was able to renovate an existing mud hole and I could start from the beginning with a completly dry hole. So, I stocked BG, Tilapia, Gambusi, fatheads, and mollys. I put thes in intentially to create the ultimate food chain, so I let them have at it for one year prior to stocking any of my LMB. You could see bait fish everywhere. Then after one year, I put the bass in and they are doing very well. The key to this is to make sure that you have the right mix of predation to counter the reproductive energy of the Tilapia. Also, I take out ALL of the green sunfish that compete with the younger bass for the baitfish. Personally, I have had outstanding results and would highly recommend Tilapia as long as it is part of the overall food chain. I sample the BG once a month with a very large perch trap as well as a minnow trap that I bought at Academy. This way I can get a general sample of what size (and subsequently age) of the BG. I caught a 17.5" LMB this past Saturday that was 16 months old and looked like a football. It was about the size of a small carrott when I stocked. I enjoy catching the weighing, measuring and releasing the bass as much (well almost as much) as I do deer watching.

Slymer1986, you make a good point about LMB in Mexico, but if I may I would like to expand on it because it may help answer L.W.J's question.

Research into LMB lakes in Mexico has shown two different situations regarding Tilapia. In lakes which have signifcant netting of Tilapia, the LMB flourish. In lakes where it is not legal or permitted to net Tilapia, the LMB fishing appears to suffer. Experts offer several explainations including one that says large Tilapia will eat fish eggs and small LMB fry.

If I had a place where year-around Tilapia were possible, yes I definitely would stock them, but would also do what I could to remove the large Tilapia...those over three or four pounds.

I had read about the predation by tilapia before your post ML, but I will say my experience is a little different. I have large tilapia and the only fry that they eat are incidental while eating pellets. There is some predation when the tilapia are juniors but it seems to be for only a short period of time. I have fry from several species and for the most part they free range. The pacu probably eat more than the tilapia. But, I have to add that none of my reproducers are predators and the tilapia might very well be able to tell the difference.

Thanks for your opinions. ewest, yes I want BG. If the tilapia are going to continusly spawn, do i have to worry about the overall biomass the pond can support. will the bass keep the numbers down. Should I just have tilapia and no BG? should I use threadfin shad aswell. Anyone Know what kind of stocking rates I should use?

rtrentjack.How big is your tank and what stocking rates did you use? Also would you mid telling me where you go your fish?

sorry for the spelling.
That was: would you mind telling me where you got your fish?

LWJ - I purchsed my fish from COTULLA FISH HATCHERY. Lee Peters is the owner.
http://www.cotullafishhatchery.com/
(830) 879-2393
(830) 879-5200
He had everything in stock that I needed.

There are some people in Hawaii who think that Tilapia end up doing more damage in reservoirs because there is no die-off and no harvesting.

In these reservoirs, the tilapia completely denude the water of any vegetation.

I have no experience either way with tilapia, but I did fish a reservoir on Kauai that was overrun with tilapia and had no vegetation whatsoever.