Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Reinventing our .10 acre pond

One idea is to try single sex crappie - catch them locally on the beds next Spring. Males will milt, females will be noticeably gravid and when squeezed won't milt. I'd stock females, I think they'll grow larger on the top end, but I'm not 100% certain. You could stock far more than your originally planned 20 and make it a put and take fishery - just restock every Spring. You could go with 150 HBG, 150 CP, and keep the RES in to help manage snail population. Catching and stocking 100-150 crappie every Spring when they are on beds isn't more than a few days worth of fishing with a few guys helping.

Think about bluntnose minnows to supplement the forage base - FHM are a great start but will likely be extirpated within a short time frame as HBG love minnows too. A small shiner species, like the spotfin, could also help boost the forage base. Lastly, consider pellet feeding the forage base and HBG to help keep both populations strong and relieve pressure off the minnow/shiner population.