Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Corrective stocking What do CC do ?

Jason,

Here are few other things. If you don't have too many, CC grow very well without feed and generally outgrow LMB in typical farm ponds with BG. One study which determined standing crops in OK farm ponds found 100% of the populations of CC to be of harvestable size. The reason is probably owing to the lack of recruitment. CC are predators but also scavengers and they will clean up fish that succumb to the rigors of spawning or old age. They are good to eat with a mild firm flesh. You will have less FA with them because they will consume some of it as they forage for other things. FA has a very common presence in their stomach contents. CB100, one of our members, employs an ingenious intuition along that line. He can clear small areas of FA by feeding his CC a sinking feed that settles into the FA. The CC consume FA as they consume the feed. All in all, CC are a good fish that will compete to some extent with LMB. Feeding them will reduce the completion to some extent. Feeding will also lesson turbidity to some extent. In a modest density, say 10 large adults per acre however, CC don't cause a lot of turbidity. In fact, I can say none in my experience. In large numbers of smaller CC they seem to invariably muddy the water by foraging intensively on the bottom. They get hook smart but I can tell you my son has caught several clipped CC many times over through the years. One should probably separate CC fishing by a few weeks because they are indeed smarter than other fish when it comes to being hook smart. The density of catfish in two ponds is around 8 fish/acre. They are good sized ranging from 4 to 8 lbs.