In my experiences, many fish farm 'biologists' are in the business to sell fish and not necessarily dispense the best information for your goals or needs. You are now testimoney to this observation and sad fact. A couple of your larger LMB will likely produce a small spawn in 2011. 10" LMB do spawn in the north. Your larger BG may spawn in 2011 but it won't be till later in the summer Jul or Aug because it will take the larger ones until then or later to grow into maturity. RES will not likely spawn in 2011. 150 LMB can produce a lot of predation on the few fish that you stocked. Calculate this: plan on each juvenile LMB to eat abt 200 fish per yr - often 300-400 fish depending on size of forage. Do the math. Although the bass will survive, be skinny, and not grow if they only get 20-50 fish to eat per yr. A gallon of minnows (1.7-2.5") has about 1400-1600fish.
It will help if you add 4-10 pr of adult BG this spring - 2011 so you are sure to get some young BG early in the spawn season - June. NOTE make sure that you add pure strain BG and not green sunfish! Know the difference.
If the CC are not eating pellets then they are probably also eating some of the smallest minnows. A new pond does not have a full matrure community of benthic invertebrates.
Getting a few new young pellet trained fish to eat pellets can be tricky in a new expansive 1.5 ac pond. Just about always, small feed trained fish such as fingerlings are very WEAKLY habituated to eat feed. Often they resort back to eating natural foods because that is instinctive. If nothing else the minnows-shiners should be showing up for pellets. Are you using a feeding ring? This helps fish to find pellets before pellets wash to shore.
Last edited by Bill Cody; 04/21/11 09:22 AM.
