I have a good hatch in my main pond now too, at least in one near shore area. I scooped up a few with an aquarium dip net attached to long piece of PVC. Here are 30 from my first attempt.
I moved at least double that in my second attempt. They seem to have hatched later than my hatchery pond, and are at least 1/2 as small probably a third at this point. I first observed them about 3 days ago.
I figure the more I can move to the hatchery pond the more I will have at harvest -- to a point.
If my seine mesh was fine enough I'm confident I could seine out several hundred.
Here's a close up of one of the ones I moved. I will try and get another picture of one of the smallmouth that are much larger in the hatchery pond and some are definitely taking artifical feed as it sinks under the light and in daylight -- some even from the top.
I apologize for the foam dust from carving fish bodies that looks like nasty dust. (This was taken in my taxidermy work area) Once I noticed and removed it -- to take more pictures -- the battery in my camera died!
They do have caudal fins btw. They are extremely transparent and difficult to see at this point.
Edit: On a walk back to the two hatchery ponds I noticed a broodstock smalmouth I missed! I got him out with a nitecrawler. I believe at most there is one left and will keep any eye out for him or her.
