Originally Posted by mtneer99
Wow thanks for all this advice and info
Ive learned a lot so far

Also I wanted to give a little more context and ask a couple questions

I have not measured much BC just a few 13 to 14” fish.
and I absolutely need to measure weigh and record my catches

Harvest - rough estimate for the last 3 years
95% eating size 12oz to 19oz
5% medium 6-8”
rare under 6”
Fry? > unsure how much
40# to 50# annual harvest

So, my questions for you. What are your thoughts on the population structure of your pond's BCP? In particular, do you think the BCP are on a sustainable stable path of recruitment and mortality? If so, or if not, what are the reasons for confidence or concern?


Questions
1 fecundity > does it change with size?

yes, there is positive correlation with body weight. For a population undergoing natural and exploitation mortality, however, the maximum biomass of a year class is achieved in the 3rd or 4th years of age. IOWs 3 and 4 year olds tend to contribute more to egg pool than do trophy sized fish which are less populous.

2 trophy size potential> what harvest approach would work best ?

For a 1 acre pond, you are doing great. There is a limit to what you should expect ultimate weights to be. What makes a trophy is time and ample food. Because the probability of population representation declines with fish age, often small bodies have trouble having survival to those ages. I think your harvest plan (dominated in BCP 3 to 5 years of age ... assuming they are growing fast and that you presently are raising multiple year classes of BCP) is conducive to growing larger fish for those that remain. Time limits of survival and available forage will determine their ultimate growth.

3 consistent large keeper size harvest > what would maintain a consistent amount of keepers +12oz

This requires consistent recruitment in limited numbers to 10". The numbers recruiting into the 10" class must be limited enough that BCP >10" have sufficient forage to continue growing. The harvest plan you have will help with that. But other factors like trends of competitors (eg BG or LMB) and forage (eg small BG) will affect forage available to the BCP. You seem to have subdued or possibly irregular recruitment of BCP so supplementation of 8"-10" recruits may be required for CONSISTENT large fish like you are experiencing now.

It isn't what we don't know that gives us trouble, it's what we know that ain't so - Will Rogers