Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Removing CNBG

Quick background: Just added 8000 intermediate CNBG late last month to 3.5 acre pond with existing LMB. Been aggressively harvesting the bass the past 6 months. CNBG are doing well (lots of them all along the banks and newly placed cover - also see large schools of tiny CNBG from the latest spawn of the summer). Prior to the supplemental stocking, there were already quite a few large CNBG in the pond.

My goal is to have a great bass fishery, so my primary goal with the bg is forage, but I do think it is great to have the option to catch a big CNBG.

With that goal in mind, would anyone recommend any sort of strategy for when I want to fry up some CNBG? Try to stick to males only? Or does it really matter?

IMO wait until after those new CNBG have spawned next spring. Then decide on a course of action. I don't harvest my biggest male BG - only smaller ones (6 inch type) if that is your goal.

ewest...what is your reasoning for choosing not to harvest the largest males instead of the females?

I will step in and help add the needed information for why harvest mainly the female BG is important. Note the suggested sizes to be harvesting in the link below. Important notes are pay attention to what the usual life span of BG will be in your local climate and harvest accordingly. For your specific goals of trying to have maximum fry production to grow LMB then use wise fishery management, discretion of harvest and use only limited harvest of the oldest adults. Harvest any size that swallow the hook or a bleeding after hook removal. Those fish almost always die within the next 3 weeks.

No harvest or very limited harvest of the largest male BG is based on published research about BG breeding behavior. It is the largest male BG that dominate the spawning areas. They occupy the most central area as bullies of the spawning area where eggs are most likely to hatch and produce the most and best fry. Largest males as a group suppress the smaller males from spending their time reproducing that results in these smaller males to keep eating and growing to then quicker become larger dominating males. This bahavior enhances the genetics by maintaining larger faster growing BG providing there is not an overabundance or too much crowding of BG numbers. Over crowding of too many BG per acre results in overall less or slower growth rates, more health problems, more stressors among individuals in the population and reduced water quality,,, in that there are more times and chances of "unhappy water" that can result in fish kills. Population numbers monitoring and management of the BG population are very important for having or growing high quality BG.

Below is a portion of the Bluegill Harvest Guidelines from the PBoss Website. Read through all the information in the link and use all the suggestions for learning more about good harvest of bluegill (BG).
https://www.pondboss.com/news/moderators-corner/bluegill-harvest-guidelines


Growing lots of BG to feed a strong, high quality or large LMB is a tricky balancing act. One good option IMO for growing high quality LMB is to not just rely on BG as forage food for LMB and incorporate more diversity of forage items so better quality BG can be grown for a more regular BG harvest. Keep in mind that when too many LMB are present it takes more forage foods to feed those ever increasing numbers of LMB. Proper Harvest of LMB is also very important to produce a high quality fishery. Proper harvest of LMB is another important topic for having or growing a high quality fishery for ones GOALS of having the fish.

Thanks, Bill. Great stuff.

To your last point, I've got ~10,000 TFS set to be stocked in the Spring. ***Edit: will have to go back and check the numbers in the mgmt plan. But I am scheduled to stock TFS in the Spring.

Thanks, Bill, for the explanation.

In addition, I don't harvest the first fish stocked into a new pond (absent some unusual situation). I believe it is best to let them live out their lives and instead focus on managing the succeeding generations which is where the balancing problems occur.

Good idea IMO on stocking the TFS as they are excellent forage for LMB in the 1 -4 lb. range. That is often the range where LMB exhibit stunting/overpopulation. That relives the prey pressure on BG in the 3-6 inch range so they can grow to forage for the larger LMB. Harvesting some (low RW) LMB in that size range and letting the remaining ones get past the overcrowding range helps. There are some good threads on how to successfully establish TFS which I recommend. One key is to stock them in the spring just before they spawn into plankton rich waters.

That's the plan, ewest!

I did have a follow-up question: I have been aggressively harvesting since May. I have only thrown 1 fish out of 300 or so back. It was a 3lber that I noticed was swimming around the gill feeder. I dropped a small live gill down on a hook and caught it within about 30 seconds. It was a very healthy 3lb fish. Nice sized belly. I have only caught 1 other fish that hit the 1 lb. mark.

These days it has become harder to find and catch the older bass although I know they are still in there. I caught 11 the other day and a couple of them looked notably healthier than in past several months.

The plan is to keep on keeping on and harvesting any bass less than 13 inches. This is the plan indefinitely.

My question is...when do I know when I am back in balance? When RW's get to a certain level consistently?

Yes, the relative weight should let you know if you're heading in the right direction.

For us, any bass 8-12 inches has to go with the rare exception of an incredibly high relative weight. Additionally, bass larger than that exhibiting poor performance has to go too.

Couple that removal plan with the addition of feeding and supplemental forage and you're in business.

Thanks ML10. I mentioned in my OP that my goal was to have a "great bass fishery". That's the general idea as opposed to a "great CNBG fishery". More specifically, I am not looking necessarily for a "trophy" bass pond. I am looking to have as much balance as possible so that me, my two teenage sons, and my 4 nieces and nephews can catch good healthy fish of multiple sizes with the ever present possibility that they will hook into a big, fat tub.

I will say that, right now, there are a BUNCH of 4-6 inch bass hovering and swimming around the cover I have put out. If I throw a lure over near them, you can see them scatter all around where the lure hits in about a 10 ft radius of the splash. That, to me has only reinforced that I needed to keep after the harvest. At one point last month, I stopped pulling them out thinking that I had harvested too many.

Same for us.

We don't have the money or time to invest in a TROPHY fishery, but with a little effort we can definitely have a great fishery. I see those 'wolf pack' bass swarming when I go too. They do a number on those small bluegill...

From -

Prof Anderson - who literally wrote the book on RW posted.

Keep taking <12 in bass until the number 8-12 equals number 12-15. Ideal pond structure is 40% 8-12, 40% 12-15 and 20% 15+

See link for info on RW and RC.

This ,from Dr. Anderson who literally wrote the book on PSD and RW may help (from an old thread).

Read these threads on PSD for guidelines which include comments from the Prof who developed the concept Richard Anderson.

http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=23612&page=1



http://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=23960&page=1


Dick Anderson


Registered: 18/09/06
Posts: 5
Loc: TX, MO, WI