Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Creating habitat Fathead minnow spawning site?

Why not hang longer sections on rope to semi-float....FH would like that better I would imagine.

This model with three slots of 3/4", 1" and 1 1/4" doesn't seem to be working. The minnows won't go inside but rather swim over the top. So next I will next try 3 1/2" slots using 2x4's. If this size entices fathead minnows to swim inside, the finished stacked unit would be about 2' wide x 10' long and stacked several compartments high. My question is, if fathead minnow are territorial would a lot of the undersurface not be used for egg deposits because the fatheads need to have some separation from each other? If this is true I don't want to waist my time building something that won't work well.

John, that sure seems that it should work. I wonder what hatcheries use?

IIRC each FHM stakes out an area about 18"-24" square if they can see their neighbors.

Esshup would the 18" to 24" fish egg areas butt up next to each other or is there a waisted spacing between the 18" to 24" area? If you think there might be then I will just make 18" square surfaces and stack them with probably 4" spacers. This is what I have in mind. I have some alum. siding that's been setting in the pole barn for years.

Dave I should make a model based on the picture and observe it with different size spacings like I am doing on the present model before building a lot of them.

I think they'd be able to butt up against one another. I wouldn't make the condos very tall, not more than a couple of feet.

I have two black plastic skids that I thought about cutting some 1/2 pvc and putting about 20 6" pieces vertical between the two skids and then put rocks on top to sink the skids in about 4' of water. and maybe put legs under them so they dont sink in the mud too. Any thoughts on this???

If for FHM spawning, I think 4' would be too deep. But, for other cover, I think it'd be perfect.

catmando - I found 150 ft. of damaged 4" flex at an auction four years ago. I bought it all for $15. I have used it to build bunny rabbit "safe zones" in our woods. An 18" piece will keep the coyotes away from the young rabbits. Our rabbit population seems to have improved a lot. But now I can't keep them out of the veggy gardens.

I cut seventy 12" to 18" pieces for shelter/habitat in my lake. It seems to work GREAT but I always have a terrible time finding enough weights to secure my artificial habitat to the bottom of the lake. I prefer to use broken fiberglass 3/8" rods from our portable electric fences to stake the sections of flex to the bottom of the lake but sometimes they let go in heavy storms. Otherwise I use weedeater line and a brick.

I have come to realize FHM will spawn on just about anything. Having put rosey reds into the pond and with their visibility, it makes it much easier to observe them. It cracks me up the places they choose as spawning sites. Of course they are using provided spawning sites, but they are also utilizing things I never thought they would!

CJ, could you list the things? I'm trying to figure out what to put in a 1/10 ac forage pond, but yet have it easily removable to seine. The sides are 2:1, and the water is 6' below the grass/soil level, so that makes it difficult to put heavy objects in the pond.

I have two pallets, which seem to have 4 FHM spawning per pallet. They are not sunk to the bottom, just floating. Several FHM are spawning on the sides of stumps of willows trees that were cut down and treated to kill them back. Of course any rocky area for rip rap has multiple FHM using the rocks to spawn under. I have placed a number of CD's stacked on top of each other using washers to leave a space as spawning structures for my spotfin/satinfin shiners to spawn on. However, the FHM have been using the bottom of each stack to spawn under. There is also a red solo cup that somehow found its way into the pond half buried in the sediment. An FHM is spawning on the inside of the cup. That maybe the cheapest, easiest spawning structure out there Scott. You could just sink several cups with a small stone and scatter them around the perimeter of the pond. When you want to seine, just pick the cups back up... Since they're bright red they'd be easy to find.

Right now there are maybe 4 pallets floating around in there, and another 4 pieces of 18" sq. closed cell foam 2" thick.

There are (or were) papershells in there too, but none have been seen lately since 2 painted turtles and one large snapper were seen in the pond. No rip-rap in the pond.

I have heard the painted turtles in particular are nasty on the crayfish population. I've considered adding softshell crayfish to the pond, but with several painted turtles and at least 2 snappers I think it would be a waste.

CJ, the plan is to place a number of 12" pieces of cut off 2" dia PVC in the pond, tied together with a rope like a ladder - to make them easy to remove for seining. Hopefully that will give them some place to hide that turtles can't get into. Without cover to hide in, and the varying water levels, this forage pond hasn't been very productive for fish or crayfish so far........

It's close to the forest, so the leaves falling into the pond in the fall make for hard seining too. Just have to seine before they start to drop!

CJB, I didn't know painted turtles liked crayfish. Do you think they could catch the ones that leave the little volcanos around the pond and the ditch?

I suspect the tunneling species would be less vulnerable to predation, but would be preyed upon at times.

I am just building my pond right now and have a bunch of 4" and 6" clay tile. I am thinking of placing many of these all around the edge of the pond in different depths for our FHMinows to populate on and hide in.

Rain I need rain to fill up my pond. Hoo hum.

Cheers Don.

Shoot some good grade marks and put the tiles in water less than 24" deep, less than 12" is better. They'll love you for them.