Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose LMB,SMB,HSB can they all just get along?

Lots of benefits of YP vs RES for partnering with SMB. YP provide good forage as 1"-5" individuals for SMB and adult YP of 8"-14" are a very good and tasty panfish. YP go together with SMB like BG go with LMB. YP and SMB occur naturally together and compliment each other in many northern lakes. IMO YP are actually better as a forage fish for SMB compared to RES. Pros of YP vs RES is YP are: more prolific, are more fusiform and easier to be swallowed, feed on a wider variety of foods, are easier to pellet train, will tolerate lower DO, and are a whole lot easier to catch than RES. IMO YP also inhabit more areas naturally frequented by SMB compared to RES. This is not to say that one should not stock RES and YP with SMB. I think RES and YP can partner okay with SMB. I think several pond owners here have RES, YP and SMB together. Maybe they can comment on this topic and how the combination is doing in their pond.

The signs of crayfish that you are seeing indicate that these are not the best crayfish to have in ponds due to the burrows they create thus perforating the walls of the pond. A couple genera with associated species of crayfish do make the characteristic chimney like burrows on the pond banks. Papershell crayfish (Orconectes immunis) do not normally make these types of burrows that damage pond walls and bottoms. Thus Papershell crayfish are a better pond inhabitant compared to some of the other common crayfish. Papershell crayfish are not native to all states. It is good to know what species of crayfish inhabit ones area. IMO you should discourage the crayfish that create the chimney types of burrows on the pond banks.