Dang, Bob that sounds like a lot of work. I'm reminded of that signature which someone uses which says ..."I only wanted to have fun". That, in all honesty, is my chief interest in this...to have some fun and to provide a small vibrant pond for my young grandchildren and their friends to get hooked on fishing....especially fly fishing. I have no interest in detailed data gathering and assessment. Been there for many years and done that very well in the aerospace business. I'm into fun at this point in my life.
Here's what I will do and can feel comfortable with. First a thesis and then the plan for each component of the thesis:
Thesis: Evaluate the growth, aggressiveness, and sustainability of the GG in a small pond designed for Kid fishing.
Growth: Measure fish samples and record weight, length, width, and water temp along with photos on at least a monthly basis. Sample size TBD but I'm thinking only two or three fish each time...but that is somewhat negotiable, especially downward.
Aggressiveness: Measure fish aggressivenes with monthly 10 cast comparisons with nearby CNBG and native BG ponds. The 10 cast test goes like this...make ten casts each with the same fly/lure or whatever in each of the three ponds and record fish caught and fish hits out of ten casts. Flies will be targeted specifically for BG and GG in order to avoid HSB, LMB, etc. Any LMB or other fish caught or hit will not count on the ten casts. Record and post results monthly.
Sustainability: This gets more subjective and I need your help for ideas...I'm trying to measure the degree to which the fishery changes over time. Either positive or negative. The proliferation of green sunfish theory, for example. Stunting fish, overpopulated fish, disappearing fish, whatever but changes that affect sustainability of the fishery. I'm thinking subjective measures, because that's about all I can do.
There is a thesis and plan. Comments anyone?
p.s. in the above the monthly reference is during the growing season only.
