Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Analyzing TJ's Pond- Evaluate My Fishery

Nate - I bought 200 3-4" YP, caged and grew them out to 6-7" this Fall and released. Weird thing though, I only ended up with 75 fish in October. No holes in cage, no way for any predators to get them...but I did release probably 25 emaciated fish with pinch bellies that apparently never got trained. Still, half my fish are unaccounted for. At any rate, great advice, and I'm going to continue to release 100-200 advanced YP every Fall as they are my favorite fish to harvest.

Few items for anyone's feedback:

I am going to employ a fyke net to help remove BG this Summer. I read a nice post from someone on the forum - sounds like a good size is only around $300. It sure beats throwing a cast net for 10-15 BG per net. Gets tiring and the BG get skiddish fast - they learn pretty fast when they see me throw a time or two to get under cover. What do you think about the fyke net for BG management?

I want my RES to grow! I never see any snails anywhere - I realize they will utilize other forage like my grass shrimp, but I'm concerned they are not growing fast. What can I do to help my RES grow? Just remove them along with BG to relieve some pressure on their preferred forage niches?

I've considered stocking some MALE LMB to help control BG...with Males topping at 2.5-3# their gape should be perfect for 5-6" BG and RES....what do you think? How many/acre? I was thinking of starting with 10-15 fish and going from there. Yes, of course I will be 100% certain the fish is milting prior to trying to id sex.

I want hand trained SMB, we don't have your water clarity, but it's not too far behind at about 3-4' between blooms. Come and show me how it's done.

What do you think of adding Chain Pickerel to the mix to help manage BG? I fear they would hammer my YP as well, which I'm trying to protect - and I have zero experience with Chain pickerel or their ability to spawn in a pond - which I do NOT want. Would they help manage the BG? At what cost?

What do you think of the ladder stocking of HSB [25-50] annually to replace my aging population?

How about my ladder stocking of WE? The small WE I've caught are pretty skinny - I worry about lack of forage to sustain a much larger population.

Lastly - what about my forage base...should I consider adding a minnow species that might establish a sustainable population to help take pressure off the GSH? What minnow would I choose - bluntnose? Would you recommend using blocking nets and allowing them to exist for 6-8 months [and reproduce several times] prior to releasing?

Thanks in advance - see you this Spring - it's Zipline time!