I agree that pellets are the easier and possibly cheaper option, however, part of the fun was going to be creating a functioning ecosystem and biodiversity where there was none before. On that note, how frequent or infrequent can supplemental feed be? Once a week?
I didn't realize that the shad could outpace the hybrid stripers. Is there another species that's better suited? Or a different introduction strategy so the HSB are ahead (like fatheads year one, shad year two)?