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This year we harvested most all BG and LMB and stocked small adult pellet-trained YP (at 300/ac). We'd like to keep our species balance as YP-heavy as possible in the coming years, and preferably pellet train high numbers of the YP YoY.
We do have at least 2 stray LMB left, a few adult BG, and will have plenty of adult and juvenile YP as predators to suppress YP recruitment, so I'm looking for a solution to help us protect good numbers of YP YoY each year from predation and to allow us to pellet train them.
I'm open to other ideas, but in my research so far it sounds like using a blocking net is very tricky and that people have had good results just placing cages off their docks to trap and raise YoY BG (some swim in as fry and get trapped once they grow too big to exit), so I'm thinking I may try the cage approach for YP.
Does anyone have any recommendations on how to best do this for YP? I think specifically I'll need opinions on:
1. Cage design - dimensions (3' height, or taller?), mesh size (1/8", 1/4"?), door/opening design to allow for feeding, solid bottom vs. open mesh bottom, should I make a solid roof for shading, etc.
2. Placement - We do NOT have a dock, so I need to figure out at what depth/how close to shore to place them, and how I'm going to hold them in place. We have bears which think everything is a toy, so I'll need to attach them in a way that doesn't make them look like a fun bear toy.
3. Anything I should do for algae control (place a couple crayfish in each cage?) and water quality control?
4. Other details, like if I should put branches or other cover inside to attract the YP fry, or any other suggestions.
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