Got a little time on the pond today and caught 3 smallmouth. They look much less emaciated than previous catches. 54 harvested in 2026. Photos attached. BlueGill and RedEar caught looked great.
If those are the LESS EMACIATED smallmouth, then I feel sorry for the skinny ones!
Since your BG and RES look good, then I am going to assume your pond water is healthy. If that is true, then your SMB population is still WAY too large for your pond size. I suspect they were either initially stocked at too great of rate, or they did manage to reproduce in your pond and were not culled by the previous owner.
Keep catching and culling would be my (non-expert) advice. Hopefully you can grow some larger SMB in there such that they will start reducing your BG crop so THEY don't overpopulate.
What is the biggest SMB you have caught?
Another option would be to add some obviously egg-bearing female LMB via bucket stocking next spring. In a pond of your small size, a small population of female-only LMB with your existing population of stunted SMB might provide a nicely balanced pond?
Good luck with your ongoing improvements!
