Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations planning a PB member Yellow Perch experiment

Since the pond in WI has year round aeration and the old timer big bass showed resultant signs of "severe Columnaris growth, ulcers, and etc. it is possible or likely that too much aeration during a cold long Wisconsin winter produced too much cooling of the water below the standard 39F and this stressed the old bass too much, to the point the secondary infections colonized the stressed fish and eventually killed them.

Others here have seen evidence of LMB being stressed due to chilling the water too much during harsh winters. Consensus here currently is, it is best to move diffusers into shallower water for winter aeration to avoid reducing the entire water column temperature of the whole pond to the 33F-34F range. Some fish species tolerate water temps below 39F better than others. Oldest fish may be more vulnerable to the really low temps more than others, depending on the species and length of time the water is "supper chilled".