Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Hybrid stripers

I finally found a supplier for hybrid stripers close by (thanks James Bryan for your earlier post on Racoon valley) My question is how many 8 inch hsb do I want to stock per acre. I do not want them as my primary predator ( i am using smb for that) but I do want enough to try and control the future black crappie numbers.

Are you going to be feeding them? Generally, if they are fed they will prey much less on other fish and consume mostly pellets. If they won't be fed, they will prey more on fish. From the research done that I've seen where HSB have been used to control crappies, they had to be stocked in rather large numbers and the pond kept open with minimal structure and vegetation. I'd stick with between 10-25/acre annually or biannually.

Cool thanks for the info. Here's a thought. Yellow perch spawn before crappie, right? If one of the reasons crappie take over is because they spawn before other sunfishes and gain an advantage, would it make sense to stock heavy on the yellow perch to help take away that advantage from the crappie? Another thought was using hbg to help control crappie as soon as they spawn then letting the hsb take over once they get a little to big for the hbg. I believe Bill was talking about Adult hbg wiping out bass spawn in an earlier discussion. Would they do the same for crappie.

I have been trying to get a photo that was sent to me as a text of a crappie a guy caught out of a farm pond around here. The fish is huge. 4.25 pounds. Supposedly three pounders are not uncommon in this pond. Got me really wanting to make the crappie thing work, but without green carp.

I think the best approach to getting crappie to do well is to make sure you have a good % of your SMB over 16" and your HSB over 20". That way you have numerous fish with bigger mouths to effectively prey on the explosion of YOY crappie. So I'd wait a few years to stock crappie to give your other fish a jump start. I would not use HBG to help control crappie numbers.

In reference to above: """Adult hbg wiping out bass spawn in an earlier discussion""". HBG will probably eat a few bass fry but I doubt HBG even if common will eat enough bass fry to keep LMB from overpopulating. HBG would have to be overabundant to eat most all the bass eggs&fry. LMB tend to protect their fry. With a little cover some bass fry will survive significant predation.

I think this is spot on...and my fishery is yielding evidence of this strategy being very effective.

I do encourage YP in this fishery, though...go for it!

Could walleye be an option as well if you are wanting to keep crappie numbers down?

IMO it's a matter of bigger mouths. Any of the predatory species, SMB, LMB, HSB, WE will all feed on crappies. Crappies most likely aren't their preferred species to feed on, but when you have a boom spawn year and they will no doubt target them. However, what ends up happening is you have too many crappies grow too fast and get to the 4"-5" mark. In many ponds, this is larger than the predatory mouths can eat. This is especially true in newly stocked ponds where there are no bass over 14". Now those crappies that reach that size are no longer able to be preyed on. They now stock pile at that size...

Whereas in a pond with a good percentage of larger size predators, those crappies even if they get to 4", 5" even 6" still can be effectively preyed on.

Keeping aquatic vegetation under control and limiting structure where smaller crappie can take refuge will also help these larger predators effectively prey on the crappies.