I really enjoy this site!

Because of the drought, I've been waiting two years for my 4.5 acre pond to fill. Recent rains have brought it up to 3.5 feet deep (it will be 16' deep when full). I plan to stock BG, Channel Cat, and 50/50 LMB and SMB. I have quite a few large rock piles for habitat and I want to stock crayfish for the SMB. My question is: If I put the crayfish in now, will they have any affect on the LMB or BG spawn? I have read that they will eat fish eggs!

Everything eats fish eggs. That's why they lay so many.
Put the crawdads in now! The sooner the better!

Is there a recommended stocking rate for crayfish? Does it matter? Maybe you just throw in a couple hundred and they will populate the pond?

Also, is there a particular species of crayfish that I guy should look for? I know there is a "rusty" crayfish that should be avoided. Can this "rusty" crayfish be identified by the color?

I appreciate the advice!

Brad,
Your pond is deep enough now to stock fatheads so I would also put them in now.
When you stock anything in your pond be sure to aclimate it to the pond temp slowly. A sudden change in water temps will kill most aquatic creatures.
Do a search for Rusty Crayfish .. there are posts with links to pic's & articles on crayfish.

Also remember that channel cats love crayfish. You may want to put in some extra.

Brad B. ( not to be confused with Brad Bortz) This time of year, If you are feeding your b-gill and have a good sub straight for reproduction, you won't have to worry about crawfish eating your b-gill eggs. Bass hang around b-gill nests constantly and will eat anything that it can easily get it's mouth around!!!!! Crawfish don't move fast and they are easy pickin's for a hungry bass. I've even seen them swipe at b-gill circling a nest. A b-gill will guard it's nest until the eggs have hatched. Only if a fish leaves it's nest will a preditor have a chance to eat the eggs... That seldom happens! So don't worry! Stock as many as you want cause they are hard to establish. They like soft mud, or rock's. Baseball to softball size or larger. Hope this helps. Good luck

Crawdads have been pretty hard to come by lately. The local bait shop got some in last week and I bought 20 large ones and let them go in the pond. I don't have any fish in it yet, and I hope these will spawn yet this summer. I'll probably put some more in next week.

Brad Bortz, why do you say they are hard to establish? Seems like their in every little puddle!

Hi Brad. I'm from Bellwood originally. When you buy crayfish from a bait shop, there is a good chance they are from the south and not native to Nebraska. Crayfish are easy to catch and you might consider going out and getting local ones.

about 4 mths ago, randall's here in austin texas had a crawfish sale.. i picked up 3 35lb bags at 35 bucks each.. i placed them in some shallow areas with plenty of cover.. and now.. when i go out i see the occasional crawfish body that the coons have got, but boy.. i catch glimps's of huge one's under the feeder.. i'm talkin from tail to tip of pincher. i'd say a good 6-7 inches, my buddy said that was the biggest he's ever seen in is life.. so i think my crawfish are doing well... lucky me i guess

chris

Brad B. If you don't have them in your lake, just like any aquatic creature, they have to have the right envirenment to succesfully reproduce, and thrive. If the proper conditions don't exsist, they are either eaten by predators or starve to death. Do a search on crawfish here on this site or check out the numerous articles found on the internet. You'll find many answers here I'm sure.