Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Evaluating and adjusting fish populations Should I worry?

Went fishing in my inherited pond and caught 4 Green Sunfish (all 4" long) - this is being addressed with recent Bass additions and a stocking order coming.

AND....one Snapping Turtle!...next day a saw 2 mating on the surface.

I know I have frog (and Green Sunfish).

Do I need to worry about turtles taking over the pond?

No

Turtles are actually a benefit because they eat the old fish that die from age and that are not harvested. Literature (DNR and published research) says unharvested fish at the end of life span,,, die at a rate of 20%-30% per year. About all these aged out fish do not float when they die. Thus you don't see them.

From Google.
Fish sink when they die because their bodies are naturally denser than water. They only float later on when bacterial decomposition produces gases (like a fish-balloon). If a fish is eaten by any scavenger, or its gases escape, it may never float to the surface at all. Several factors determine if and when a dead fish will float: Initial Sinking: Because a fish's bones and muscles are dense, it drops to the bottom immediately after death. etc etc.