After reading misc. posts, can I also take away that BT's will eat chara? Will I need about 40 to control FA for a 1 acre pond? I think they would be tasty this fall too

Where is the best place to get talapia in Northern Indiana?

I have not had success with tilapia eating chara ? Has anyone else ?

Blue tilapia will live the longest in Indiana. Eating Chara (an algae) will happen IF other, more desirable foods are consumed by the offspring first. In my aquariums, it is quite fascinating to watch Chara being consumed....My Blue Tilapia start at the top of it and chew till pulling it from the substrate.....

PROPER stocking rates for individual ponds is crucial to have a shot at accomplishing the goals desired!

I've had testimony by a local pondowner with blue tilapia (BT) that cleaned out the "moderate" infestation of Chara in his small 0.3 ac pond containing primarily YP. BT ate Chara after the FA was gone. He actually watched the tilapia eat the Chara with one BT on each side of the plant pulling off 'leaves'.

I believe George posted about Moz cleaning out the chara for him. They didn't for me.

Dave, I believe my reference was that I had never observed tilapia eating aquatic vegetation of any sort and Rainman challened.
My resopose was that GC will eat anything when hungry and perhaps tilapia will do the same.
I have never a had a chara problem but my GC LOVE water primrose..

Yeah, I now remember it was primrose.

One thing to remember is that different species/hybrids of tilapia have wildly varied food preferences...people want to lump all tilapia together in capabilities and often wind up disappointed.

Know your problem, know your supplier. Studdies show that Blue Tilapia have the widest ranging diet followed my Mozambique. Nile Tilapia are not good for much more than algae control and can have a hugely reduced reproduction rate compared to blues and moz.

Mozambique are great in the southern state climates, and all but useless once you get very far north of the southern tier states.

Did anyone happen to notice if the LMB enjoyed the BT fingerlings for lunch? It looks like they enjoy "reproducing".

Mike, all the predatory fish eat the offspring. The Tilapia grow so fast every size class in the pond will snack throughout the year on tilapia...removing pressure from the "normal" prey fish allowing them to increase in size and numbers as well as the predators...this is what is meant when tilapia eat otherwise "wasted" pond nutrients (plants and detritus) and move it up into the food chain....It's been said many times, A tilapia's death is it's pond magic!

Outstanding, I think they are closer to being in in my pond!