Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose fingerling help

the pond is not new and is about 2/3 acre

If I stocked fathead minnows with fingerling fish would it help the little fingerling crappie, bluegill or shellcracker by being eaten instead of the fingerlings?

All fish are opportunistic predators of something else. Fatheads are a very prolific and slow swimming forage. They will get wiped out but that's their job.

All small fish can be expected to suffer 98% (or some number) mortality if larger predators are present. But, that's what Mama Nature intends.

By stocking FHM along with your fingerling panfish, you may take a slight bit of pressure off of them... Bass will feed on the easiest to prey on item. FHM are fusiform and spineless, crappies and sunnies are more rounded and spiny... However, depending on the density of your bass population, they may quickly work through all the FHM and be right to eating your fingerling panfish... Stock smaller numbers of the crappie and sunfish, but stock larger ones. In the end you will get more to survive. Try to stock sunfish that are at least larger than 1/3 of the vast majority of your LMB.

Would it help to stock them closer to say December as well when the LMB tend to slow down of feeding?

No. When the water warms in the spring and the LMB get back to feeding heavy, they're going to eat the stockers who are pretty much the same size they were when stocked in December as they aren't growing much if any in the cold winter water.