Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Chain Pickerel in Pond

What other kinds of fish can you introduce to a pond with Chain Pickerel in it ( i know they are highly predatory) and that would be able to coexist with them? I am guessing some types of sunfish would be alright/doable and Salmonoids and yellow perch would be out/undoable but beyond that i have no idea. Would any of the following be suitable. Smallmouth Bass, White Sucker, Brown Bullhead, Koi and Goldfish, White Perch, Golden Shiner and fathead minnow, Muskellunge, Largemouth Bass, Weather Loach, red Swamp crayfish or Eel. Does it depend on Pond size at all or amount of Pickerel in the pond. Any info would be great.

Hey aaronmac,

Welcome to the PBF! Chain Pickerel if I remember right dont really get to big. About 18 to 22 inches give or take. At that size a lot of fish could get along with them to some degree. Larger Sunfish, Largemouth Bass would do ok. If you have a big enough pond to handle more than one predator fish. Pickerel are fun to catch given they get about 20 inches long or so but they have a lot of teeth! In order for anything to live with them I would think they would have to be at least 5 inches long or better. Any Golden Shiners and fathead minnows would be easy fish food for a Pickerel. I would thinky you could do the same thing as you do with LMB. Your going to need a fish and does a lot of spawning like the Bluegill. Larger BG would get along with them as well, and spawn enough to help feed the Pickerel. As far as how many per acre??? I have no idea. How big is your pond?

IME there are a number or species that can do well with chain pickerel(CP). The biggest question is, what are your goals for this pond with CP in it? More details about the species already present in the pond besides the CP would help. Other questions I have, are how big is it? Depth? Is it aerated? Are you willing to feed the fish? Do you live by it or it is a vacation location? Is there aquatic vegetation present, if so what species and what % of the pond is covered? These answers will help form a better response than just generically saying yes or no to a certain species...

Oh yeah, and welcome to PB!

Also, in my experience with CP in ponds, they tend to average in the 12"-14" range and the largest I grew was a hair over 24" and in the 4+ pound range. Don't expect them to control BG reproduction by themselves. They are poor sunfish predators IMO/E. They would much rather eat GSH, YP or even small bass. They just don't have the big gape like a LMB does...

My main goal is a pond that i can do some recreational fishing in, i can pretty much do that with the Pickerel now but they are a fair bit on the small side so i was hoping i could add some type of forage fish to increase their size as well as add something else to fish for, add a bit of variety.The only other species present right now is Brown Bullhead.I have tried to introduce Yellow Perch (repeatedly)and its been a huge failure, have never even caught a single Perch. Also tried Speckled Trout unsuccessfully.The pond is near my house, i just bought the house 5 years ago. Its a relatively new pond, the owner only made it a few years before he sold the place, it was originally made to attract waterfowl. I am honestly not too sure about the exact size, its fairly big though, I will look into it. Used to have some pictures online of it, might try and see if i can find them.I would say though its around 10 feet in the deepest spots.I would say weedcover is still developing but there are a decent amount of good sized weedbeds around the edges. I am not sure what type, its some kind of pondweed i think. That and cattails are pretty much the main vegetation.I don't airate. Not opposed to feeding but i would rather introduce something which would be able to survive and spawn, sort of a natural type system.

Welcome to Pond Boss aaronmac, I would suggest Pumpkinseeds, and Golden Shiners.

I wonder why the YP have failed to take hold? What size were they when stocked? I would avoid bluegills. I like redbreast sunfish and would recommend them. Goldenshiners would be excellent forage for your CP.

An accurate size would be help, try Google Planimeter to help you get an accurate size on your pond.

Its a complete mystery as to why the YP haven't taken hold, I have tried perch of a variety of sizes including some fairly large ones (over 10 inches) but the result has always been the same. Never have caught one, seen one or even found a dead one. I may give Golden Shiners a shot but i am not terribly optimistic give the smaller size and soft body. It would be better if the Pickerel had become established after some forage fish were already present in the pond but unfortunately it was this way when i got it.Rebreast Sunfish sounds like a great idea. Have you ever tried Pumpkinseed and are they any good? How about Smallmouth Bass (younger fish could provide good food) or Koi (have heard they get pretty large so younger classes might provide good food)

I have pumpkinseed and golden shiners in the pond to supply forage for the trout, they are hardy, especially if your pond is subject to very cold temps, they are also tolerant of low oxygen.

If your pond is prone to winterkill those 2 species can help make the difference, that's my 2 cent opinion.

Skip the koi... If you stock SMB, they'd have to be 8-10" plus. I'd consider getting your water tested.

So what is wrong with Koi?

I have considered putting some in a pond.

Thanks

Koi are just river carp (german carp) with color. All physical and internal features the same. Note the characteristic barbel at the corner of the mouth. They are also fertile and readily reproduce. A significant % of offspring are drab colored. Check it out. Carp are aquatic pigs, aquatic rototillers, roiling the sediments for food and muddying the water with suspended silt-clay. If that is beneficial for your pond management goals then there is nothing wrong with koi.

I have definitely heard lots of things about how destructive they can be but I was wondering if they had a predatory fish like Pickerel to control their numbers and lots of cattails in the pond ( have heard they can make cleaner/clearer water, my aunt has a pond filled with goldfish and surrounded by cattails and hasn't had much problem with muddy water) whether or not they might be a decent forage fish. or could i even establish them in a pond full of Pickerel. It doesn't seem too likely but i figured i would get some feedback

If you like pickled fish, I have a quick and easy way to pickle those CP. You can pickle what you catch if you are into that and wean down their numbers. I would guess that the perch are getting whacked by the CP before you see them again. PM me if you need the pike pickling process

How big of a fish can a Pickerel eat? One pond that I know of was winterkilled in 2008, and someone stuck some goldfish in there since then. Now they are 9"-10" long and 3"-4" tall. The majority of the fish are brownish colored.

I have to stock 10"+ trout in our creek or the trout become pickerel food.

i would not put largemouth bass in there if you like the chain pickeral i did it in my pond and the bass love to eat them.so now you can catch the chain but it is rare when i did use to have alot of them.a bass can eat a large chain pickeral and will do so i use them for bait for big bass here around my house in ga.chain pickeralalso like the taste of each other so once you get a big one any smaller ones that get around him he will eat them.

bg do really well with chain pickeral.i don't know about small mouth we don't have them where i live.

What are GSH?

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