Thanks for your replies!
Are you saying that the water level fluctuates by as much as 4' thru the year?
Yes. Probably 3-4 feet of depth on a normal year from full to lowest point. This last year, it dropped about 6-7 feet from full
What percentage of the surface area has habitat, man-made or otherwise? I think It's recommended that there is aprox. 25%.
At low, probably less than 5%. At full, 5-10%... It's hard to say. I agree, there definitely needs to be more cover
Have you been keeping track of weights-v-lengths of all fish caught?
No. I will begin tracking these again for the fish that I catch(I did it for a short time but lost my records). Also, it's sort of difficult when other family members don't all chip in on tracking - I'm sure plenty of you know the feeling. Also, I am not able to fish often, its limited to about 1 weekend per month(I live/work in DFW,TX)
would you also say that it is 1.5 acres when full or at the low point?
It is approx 2 acres when full, approx 1.5 at low. Maybe 1.3 acres after last summer severe drought, it got down to about 6 ft below full.
The last photo, of the very skinny bass, makes me think that particular bass had eaten something it shouldn't have -- like a rubber worm.
Thanks, I thought that something was terribly wrong with that one... I should have harvested it and investigated its internals -- I'll keep that in mind next time! I haven't done it before, but I guess this would be good practice on other harvested fish to see what they're eating
Because of the pond size, I assume you probably have reasonable spawning areas, but not enough hiding places. The structure you put in sounds like a great start. However, I would give serious consideration to even more structure with pathways/runways to the spawning areas.
Thanks, we'll have to keep adding more and more... We have a bunch of pines we can go chop down around the property. We've put some smaller ones in standing up but I think laying them down, slanting into deeper water or connecting to other structure/spawn areas will be good.
Here's my take. If the water level fluctuates every year, you have to manage the pond as if the water stayed low continually (regarding to fish numbers per acre). Because of the fluctuating, plants won't survive. Floating islands and cover in deeper water - 20% of the pond should be cover (surface area). Put in cover that is dense enough for small fish to swim into/thru but won't allow the larger fish to do that.
Thanks, I'll have to look into the floating islands a bit more -- I've seen them but haven't looked into how to build them or costs. The cheaper the better if possible! Would it be best to keep these near the center of the pond? or anchored out maybe 20 feet... or just let it roam freely?
Don't just take out the small LMB. Print out the Relative Weight chart in the archives, and remove the LMB that are under 90% or so RW.
Thanks, I'll start including this methodology for harvesting.
Here is the satellite map with a few comments added. In the image, the water is probably 2-3 feet below full
