I agree a pond with a constant outflow is not a candidate for rotenone. Too hazardous. Any complete fish renovation would involve a pond draining.
Experience tells me that it is doubtful that all sizes of LMbass died during the winter kill because the pond does have some inflow - outflow. This means water flowing into the pond could have contained enough dissolved oxygen (DO) to allow a few small bass and other resident small fish that were near the inflow to survive the winter kill. Small fish generally require less DO for survival compared to larger individuals.
AnthonyT asks - “The SBS sound interesting. Could I have them with a few LMB or would it be best to just have the SBS? I read a bit about them and they are suppose to be 95%+ males so there shouldn't be any reproduction. I guess I just answered my own question about the LMB - there wouldn't be anything for them to eat! Any idea what species they cross to get the SBS?”
SBS are a relatively new hybrid sunfish on the pond circuit. Specklebelly is a trade name for the genetic hybrid cross of Bluegill and Redear sunfish. Supposedly they do grow to be a really big sunfish if given enough food and are not over crowded. A high percentage of males means some females will be present to produce eggs and initially a few offspring. As the population ages as Fx generations more females will likely be present to add more genetic cross offspring that could likely genetically trend more toward the BG rather than RES. Maybe not? This is why the SBS stockings should have plenty of predators to eat the SBS offspring. Although IMO any BG with some RES genetics mixed in is not a bad thing.
Plenty of predators could IMO mean LMB and or HSB. If it were LMB with lack of food they would typically stay small as in the 10”-12” size range. Little or slow growth would be due to lack of food. This can be a GOOD thing.
1. Numerous always small LMbass will be a type of management TOOL and keep ABOUT all or all SBS reproduction eaten. Small bass are forced to eat small fish that need to have numbers reduced
2. Numerous small LMB will almost always be hungry and easy & fun to catch especially for kids.
3. LMB at 12”(1lb) can be harvested and be invited guests to dinner.
4. Some small hungry LMB will probably learn to eat fish pellets and grow slightly larger than their close relatives adding to the angler action and harvestable results.
HSB will also be a good predator for producing big SBS.
1. HSB will actively grow large when eating pellets while keeping SBS offspring reduced.
2. HSB inch for inch fight harder than LMB.
3. HSB are usually more expensive than LMB.
4. HSB do not survive well when caught during the hottest months of the year. They fight to the point of exhaustion and warm water and low summer DO do not allow fast recovery.
5. HSB rarely ever create offspring in ponds. They periodically need to be restocked – ladder stocked to maintain several HSB size classes that will prey effectively on different sizes of smaller sunfish.
SBS are a trademark name for a cross between BG X RES. It is not known which parent is the male and which the female. I currently think these fish will also help reduce the number of common parasites in the pond by eating snails. RES thrive on eating snails and small mollusks. The BG part or contribution of SBS cross readily train to eat fish pellets. This combination of big BG and big RES potential, I think will allow SBS to have two genetic changes to grow big and often to trophy sizes. Regular hybrid bluegill BGXGSF IMO will not grow as big as SBS because GSF as a species do not normally grow as big as BG nor RES. IMO one of the disadvantages of the SBS hybrid is these fish might not have a strong catchability as the BGXGSF hybrid because GSF are a very big mouthed, aggressive species easily and readily caught by anglers. IMO the SBS make up for the possible lack of aggressiveness is the fact the SBS should grow significantly larger than the traditional BG-GSF hybrid.
How many to stock in a ¼ pond that has a reduced fish community is the question. Since the pond will have pellet feeding, I think a good number to begin a stocking is 40-100 (up to 400/ac). I think you are correct the SBS could grow bigger when fewer numbers are stocked. If the pond has bottom aeration then the number can be increased up to 150 (600/ac). Watch their development and growth rate. Harvest accordingly. More can be periodically added if the fishery is a whopping good success.
If it were my pond, I would stock SBS at the larger available size. I highly suspect that the two size groups of Jones Fish of SBS 2-3” & 3.5-5” are both one year old. IMO the 2”-3” are the small ones graded from a one year old population. The smaller ones are the runts and the larger ones are the faster growing group. Ask about this ‘age thing’ before buying or ordering. If all are 1 yr old then I would buy from the larger size group because these are the faster growing individuals who ultimately grow faster and larger. You are not buying a lot of SBS so the added cost due to bigger fish is not high. If the SBS are two different age groups then I would buy the smaller size.
I am currently watching a SBS producer shipped order of 2”-3” SBS that were purchased in December and grown in aquaculture in 75F water. As of March 10, these fish ranged from 3” -7” long – slow and fast growers - all from the same 2”-3” batch or shipment of fingerlings. FYI - Only one producer of these trade marked SBS exists - Malone's Fish Hatchery. All retail sellers buy from Malone.
PREDATION - For adequate predation of your existing small pond resident fish after the winter kill, I would add 6-8 HSB. If you want these HSB to grow larger quicker then add 6. If you want stronger predation pressure then add 10 (HSB), preferably 6”-8” long. As an option - for your small 0.2ac pond a few HSB and just one LMB could provide effective predation pressure on SBS and a few residual RES. One lone LMB in your mixed fish pond could grow to decent size 15"-17" and be eating larger sunfish and some small LMbass if produced.
If you buy the small 2”-3” size of SBS I do not think they will spawn the same year as stocked.
Watch and monitor for their growth and watch for numbers of all types of small fish near the middle or end of summer. A good way to check and monitor for presence and relative numbers of small hatchlings after a Spring spawn is to buy a 15ft to 30 ft ¼” minnow seine that is pulled through the shallow beach area.
https://www.memphisnet.net/category/seine-netsAnother less effective sampling method for small fish is to use minnow traps baited with bread or fish food. IMO the Gee Minnow trap is the best small trap. Note - small LMB are best sampled with a seine vs traps. The pond could have a few young low DO tolerant LMB remaining after the fish kill.
