Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Smallmouth bass in pond?

I would not use Rosey Reds. I can say, even 100% Rosey Reds, will convert back to 99%+ natural color in less than a year without any major fish predators.

I stocked 100 rosey reds into my pond last year on May 19. The pond has a hand full of male only sunfish. No other predatory fish. By July of last year I had 1000's of fry and 1" rosey reds and normal colored FHM. By the end of summer it was about 1/3 rosey reds and 2/3 natural colored. Winter was tough on the rosey reds as I think the diving fish eating birds could see them and hammered them silly. By warm up I was at 95%+ natural coloration. I am now at 99%+ natural coloration. I have 1000's of FHM but I occasionally see a few adult rosey reds. Now the fry being born are a fairly decent mix of both colors but they seem to disappear fast if they are the rosey red coloration. In a pond that had LMB or another predator, this process would happen much faster.

Just stock normal colored FHM.