Welcome - You have a lot of homework that needs to be done. A good fishing and hunting pond is as you mention on opposite ends of the spectrum. If you have only one pond then you have to establish which goal best fits your desires. If you want good duck hunting with a fishing pond then build a sizable wetland in the upstream water shed or near the inlet of the fish pond. The wetland will also filter water to create a better pond water quality & habitat for fish. There have been several articles in Pond Boss magazine about building waterfowl oriented ponds. Proper introductions of native plants that favor waterfowl have also been discussed in the articles. Do some homework for those articles by collecting the back issues.
Here are the waterfowl oriented articles back to 2004. Not much prior to that.
Waterfowl Pond Info Articles In Back Issues of Pond Boss Magazine.
May-June 2017: PREPARE FOR WATERFOWL SEASON NOW. VanSchaik tells how to best host dabbling ducks, perching ducks, geese, and what preferred natural forages & grain crops to be best used in shallow impoundments. Placement of hunting blinds.
Mar-Apr 2014 . IMPOUNDMENTS FOR WATERFOWL. VanSchaik provides the goals for these impoundments, design, size, food strips, and types of birds that will utilize the area
Jul-Aug 2014. NATIVE PLANTS FOR WATERFOWL. Van Schaik reviews the food value of 24 types of plants as food value for waterfowl.
Mar-Apr 2007 SHALLOW WATER IMPONDMENTS. Wyman provides an introduction for a series of articles that will explain how to build water features to attract waterfowl.
IT’S A DOG TRAINING WORLD OUT THERE. Mike Otto examines the specialized ponds for training Labrador retrievers of John and Martha Russell. Included are unique features of slopes, proper depth, shoreline shape, freeboard, spillways,, anti-seep collars and use of topsoil that are required to build ponds for training dogs.
May-Jun 2007 DUCK LAKE. Wyman describes the planning of a 14 acre lake with a water fowl marsh.
Jul-Aug 2007 PLAN FOR FALL WATERFOWL NOW. VanSchaik explores fish ponds that can attract waterfowl. Various waterfowl defined, intense management discussed, included is staggered planting dates, native vs cultivated plants, nutritional value of native plants and importance ratings of 25 native plant groups.
Fish pond maximum depth will depend on your location in Indiana. Northern IN should have deeper depths to reduce chance of oxygen shortages and winter kill during harsher winters with extended deep snow cover compared to southern IN. IMO northern IN should have ponds that are closer to 15-18ft of depth for 20%-25% of the surface area to reduce chance of winterkills especially as the pond becomes older as in 20-50 yrs and is eutrophic from plant nutrients that are accumulated each year. Build it correctly the first time. If you don't want a leaker pond then read through this thread.
Last edited by Bill Cody; 02/06/18 11:37 AM.
