Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Tips on stocking a smallmouth pond

Turtis, I think golden shiners(GSH) will do fine in your pond. Fathead minnows(FHM) will be a good start as well. In small waters you will often find that the predators just simply out eat the reproductive capacity of their prey...

Theo is right about crayfish being a great alternative. I am not sure if you will even be able to find a source for native crayfish in your area. You may want to try trapping some yourself. Set out a couple crayfish traps baited with rotting beef liver or something else stinky in a couple local ponds. Any native crayfish should be suckers and then you can transfer them to your pond.

As far as alternative species to stock in your pond besides GSH and FHM... Your biggest challenge will be finding a commercial source to purchase them from. Washington State is not exactly a aquaculture mecca, but being so even if you lived in Texas or Arkansas where you have numerous hatcheries to choose from, few sell anything more than you standard GSH and FHM anyways.

Other commerically available species I have heard of or seen are goldfish which I wouldn't recommend. Banded killifish which I would recommend, but you would have to have them air freight sent to you at a high expense if they would even be legal in your state. Brook silversides which isn't even an option for you. Mosquitofish(gambusia), I doubt they would do well in your colder enrironment. Bluntnose minnows, no source near you as well...

So this only really leaves you one option and that is to collect fish from the wild to transfer to your pond. Unfortunately, the Olympic Peninsula is not teaming with native forage fish diversity. There is only one specie I can think of that would be adapted to pond life. The Olympic mudminnow, Novumbra hubbsi. The Olympic mudminnow is closely related to the central and eastern mudminnows and prefers a similar habitat, backwaters with plenty of vegetation. They maybe a good alternative forage species for your pond as both eastern and central mudminnows have been used as forage fish in the past. There are a couple other species found in your area, but none are adapted to pond life.

Whatever you decide to do, I would establish plenty of cover for your forage fish species so you have a shot of maintaining a self reproducing population that can handle predation. This may not be possible in a smaller pond though. Or you need to source feed trained fish to help alleviate pressure on your forage fish.

The addition of yellow perch would add to the difficulty as they are another set of mouths to feed. Smallmouth bass(SMB) may have a hard time keeping their numbers under control, but if you manage them through egg strand collection and fishing you may be able to have them as well. Bill Cody is very knowledgeable in this area and perhaps he will share his opinions on this subject as well.

Best of luck!