Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Will frogs eat my fish? and other questions...

I have a new pond (1/3+ acre) dug in October that is almost full (but it goes down slowly between rains). It's pretty muddy because the grass in the watershed isn't fully developed yet. And it's FULL of tadpoles.

I guess I have 3 questions.

First, SHOULD I add fish now? The digger told me it could take a while for the pond to completely seal. Right now when the pond fills it slowly goes down (maybe a foot every 2 weeks). Then with a good rain, it fills back up again. He told me to give it a year to "seal up" and if it didn't he'd come back out to core the dam deeper. The pond is in a slight ravine that had a seasonal stream and was used to dump trees when the land was cleared. There is no leaking at the dam or within about 100' downstream. However, quite a ways into the woods in the old stream channel, there is running water, about 5X that of a garden hose running full blast. It's clear water so I'm not at all sure it's coming from my muddy pond. And if it is, it's leaving a bunch of silt behind somewhere so maybe it will "clog up" and seal.

Second, should I add fish NOW? Is it too late in the season to add my FHM and CNBG? So they'll be ready for next years LMB?

Third, when these tadpoles become frogs, will they EAT all my small fish?

Thanks...

2. I doubt it. Up here, it's not even the prime time stocking season yet (I think the 25 deg air temps have something to do with my view on that), so I bet you have sufficient time left in 'Bama.

3. ALL the small fish - no way. Some of them - sure. But 99.9+% of very small fish are going to get eaten by something. Your bass will get even for you by eating the frogs.

Note the population numbers of non-fish species in your pond this first year. You will never see many of them in quantities anywhere near what they have today after your fish go in.