Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Evaluating and adjusting fish populations I want a catfish pond but have bluegill crowding

Ok, in a fed pond with a flow through I think you could do 200 or so per acre. Of course, that assumes some agressive fishing.

What is your PH at this time?

I'll check PH. I am searching for a fish hatchery. In the past, the State came out and stocked my pond. State Biologist stated due to depth and flow, would probabaly sustain some Trout, naturally though unable to reproduce.

I've owned this pond for thirty years. Always been a great pond in the past with no real management on my part. I'd like to keep it simple.

Lee Burch

East Texas ponds are usually acidic and don't fair well with catfish unless treated with lime. I had ponds near Hawkins, north of Tyler, and lost every fish because I didn't know better (I've since learned much from this site). As far as bluegill overcrowding, I would't mind that problem at all -assuming that they are bluegill and not greenies. I have a pond now smaller than your's with at least 200 cats , and its has many bluegill and greenies. And, channel cat will eat bluegill if the can catch them - I've seen to many cats caught on trotlines bait with live bluegill not to realize that.

Squeeky, I didn't know you could lose all your fish because of not liming. How do you know it was because of that?

I looked into liming this pond but decided it wasn't worth the cost or effort. Right now there's no way a truck could get to the pond. If the CC don't grow well I will probably lime it in a year or two.

The experts told me earlier in this thread that getting rid of the BG (GSF? I need to learn how to tell the difference) was the way to go if I was planning to feed the CC (which I am). The BG would eat a lot of my feed and I'm not interested in growing BG in this pond. Plus they would add to the biomass and possibly cause dissolved oxygen problems. I think they probably got in the pond because my grandfather used them as bait on his trotline in the pond 20 years ago. My grandma says he definitely didn't stock anything except CC in it.

HBG and CC with feed is a simple workable plan if you want a put and take fishery. I would add a couple of HSB to that to help with the HBG offspring.

The HSB would be interesting. And the place I got my fish, Tyler Fish Farm, sells them. How would the HSB do if the only feed I throw in the pond is the cheaper 32% protein catfish food? I'd be willing to buy the right food for the HSB but I don't want to feed it to the CC if they'll grow well on the cheaper stuff. Is there a way to get the HSB to eat their food and the CC to eat theirs? I'm guessing not. What would happen to the HSB if the only food I throw in the pond is CC food?

I don't think Tyler Fish Farm sells HBG. Is there another fish that could fill that 'niche'? What exactly is the reason for stocking them?

The HBG and CC will eat the same food. HSB can eat it also. Purina GFC would work and is probably about the same cost or close. Check on that as it will do a little better for all 3 than plain catfish food. I would also suggest you add some FH as well.

I'll definitely check on the GFC. The more I think about it the more excited I get about maybe getting some HSB.

ewest, if I'm not interested in catching HBG is there still a reason to stock them?

They are great for kids to catch - grow fast , very aggressive and easy to get to bite. They will provide some forage for the CC.

I can't say definitively that is was the acid condition of the water that caused my fish loss, but other pond owners in that area had told me that their ponds had slowly lost fish due to the acidic conditions. I also had a large garden pond at Holly Lake Ranch which was in the area of my ponds, with Koy and Goldfish that seemed to do ok. The water was filtered and aerated, but when I tossed a few small CC in, they started coming belly up within a week or so. By the way, you can trap greenies and BG very effectively with floating funnel traps baited with a handful of floating catfish pellets. I make my own traps with pvc and plastic mesh and set out 2 or 3 traps at a time
I've trapped many BG and greenies, but never a CC or bass.