I appreciated the u-tube video, good job. Do Tilapia survive the Indiana winters? I live in East central IN near Winchester and had thought about Tilapia as an algae eater that wouldn't muddy the pond.
John, one of the hardest things I have to overcome in stocking tilapia is that people think of them as any other fish stocked in a pond...You have to think of tilapia as a tool...they are stocked instead of using chemicals and stocked instead of using feed...They are a tool for the pond and the tilapia NOT surviving is the biggest benefit the other fish in a pond, If you put pen to paper, even at the most conservative estimates, stocking tilapia costs far less per acre to control vegetation chemically and WAAAY less than buying an equivalent amount of feed would to equal the amount of forage tilapia reproduction creates...What other product can also boast reducing muck other than aeration and bacteria along with improving the water quality or carrying capacity in a pond. NO other fish or product can do all that, except tilapia.
I raise and in more northern waters, stock only pure strain Blue Tilapia which are the most cold tolerant of all species and hybrids. I will be in Indiana again on a large tilapia run to area distributors early next week. If interested, contact either myself or esshup.
