I first noticed the cloud of baby bulheads last year and I am sure the first ones were brought in by the birds.
The big differences between ponds that get stocked by our feathered and the ones that don't are what is stocked initially, distance to other water sources, and how many birds visit how often. We have many birds coming and going on a regular basis and many ponds within a few miles. Most of the local pond owners have species they didn't stock. I also had a bad fish kill 2 winters ago and I am just restocking bass now.
If I was in an area with less bird traffic, greater distance to other waters or was stocked heavily with bass the babies either wouldn't have arrived or would have been eaten before I saw them.
