Ewest has very good information presented above. In reality the structure of the smaller fish in your pond are as important, if not more important, to the future of your fishery than the "big ones". This is because the "big ones" are near the end of their life span and it is the small and medium ones, their density, available forage, body condition, and how well they will grow in the future that determines the long term condition or status of the fishery. Thus it is important to regularly monitor all sizes and species of fish in the pond/lake.
Don't spend all your time fishing for the "big ones" because without good management of the smaller ones, the big ones may not continue to be there several years from now. How many ponds or lakes have you seen that once had very good angling but later the fishing was 'poor'? Now,,, you might know one reason why. Most likely the structure of the smaller fish populations were not properly monitored, sampled, adjusted, and managed as needed. In my opinion, one should spend more time checking the smaller fishes than the bigger fishes. If for no other reason there are a lot more smaller fish that should be present and growing well to produce those fewer numbers of larger quality fish.
Last edited by Bill Cody; 11/19/13 07:39 PM.
