Eastland,

Have you considered stocking small 1-2 inch bluegill? they are far less expensive than larger fish. based on your post you are willing to wait until 2004 until stocking bass. If you stock this year with small bluegill they will have more than enough time to grow to a size large enough for spawning by next June. If you want insurance you can feed the bluegill all summer. they will be ripe an ready for bass stocking next year.

Stocking adult bluegill this year will create a situation where they will begin spawning this year. Depending on the numbers of fish you stock you could have a severely crowded bluegill population by next summer. When fish become crowded they stop growing, get diseases and could possibly die.

on the other hand, you may not be able to catch enough large bluegill to transport to your lake. when stocking larger fish I like to stock 250 bluegill per acre. at that rate you would need 2500 fish for a 10 acre pond thats a ton of fishing with hook and line.

when stocking smaller (1-2 inch) bluegill I usually stock 400 per acre.

If your fertilizing you can double those numbers. To keep cost down dont fertilize the pond until you have stocked all your fish. Its OK to wait until your fish population is established before fertilizing but do not start fertilizing and then stop.

I have no pics of hybrid BG as I never stock them.

hope this helps