Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Evaluating and adjusting fish populations bass minimum spawning size

I have just stocked a new six acre tank near Whitney, Texas with 1800 bluegill, 80 pounds of fathead minnows fathead minnows and 500 redear. I intend to add bass in November when the fishery prices drop. I am curious as to how big (or old) LMB have to get before they spawn. It is my understanding that bass spawn in the spring, but that doesn't tell me which spring or what size I should stock to get a bass spawn as soon as possible.

I don't have an answer to your question, but it is generally wise to wait until next spring to add the lmb. You need to let your forage base establish, you want them to spawn first so there is enough food for the predators; or you might end up bass heavy and out of balance. It is definitley worth the weight. Good luck.

like lildumper posted , let the forage fish do their stuff for awhile. you didn't say how big the gills where , you stocked. if 1 to 2 " you might have to wait even longer to put the bass in. i would wait untill i saw new young gills before putting in the small bass. put in bass from a couple or three different hatcheries if you can.

Geostaples -- there is some varability on the size at which largemouth bass are mature. However, let me give you the simple answer for now.

Generally speaking, the males mature around 10-11 inches, and the females around 11-12 inches. It sometimes is a little lower when growth is slow, because the fish are older at a given length.

Dave

why did you stock so few bream and redear?that's only 300 fish per acre,pretty small number.

Here's a different angle. Rather than looking for bass which spawn, if that's your thinking, remember you need to provide an adequate food chain, first. The numbers you stocked are not the best advice. You stocked fewer sunfish than you should have, and more fatheads than you needed.
Fatheads feed bass fingerlings for a year to 18 months. Then, young sunfish, spawned from your originally stocked fish, become the backbone of your food chain.
If done properly, your bass grow as the food chain expands, until bass reach 9-12"...when they spawn. Bass babies completely change the dynamics, as they grow up.
If you want to stock fish this fall, add bluegill.
Then, next spring, stock 50-75 bass per acre. Besides, that's when fish prices really do drop. New baby bass sell for less, because farmers have more of them.