Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose YP Only Pond

Getting ready to stock my YP only pond and just want to check with the experts so I am not doing something too wrong.

I have been aerating (Vertex) my .12 acre pond (averaging about 5 feet deep) since about June of last year. The pond does not have any fish in it except the couple dozen FHM I added last fall. I am planning a YP only pond for some light fishing and good eating.

I am planning to purchase only pellet fed YP with a male/female ratio of 30/3 (does that sound right?). I was not really sure about the YP size to purchase. Should I consider 6”-8” or 8”-10”?

Also thinking about a couple pounds of rosie red minnows as forage feed for stubborn YP not pellet trained.

Stocking planned for this weekend. Sound like a good plan?

Ed from NE Ohio

have your FHM reproduced yet since you only stocked last fall ?...

Might help to let them almost over populate first, but you are stocking feed trained so maybe not...Some YP experts will give more solid suggestions ..........

Hi BobbyRice,

I haven't seen any FHM reproduced yet?

Probably a bit early for the FHM to have spawned. They have not spawned yet here in VA, but are getting close. We just keep getting cold rains and it knocks them off their spawn.

I am sure Bill Cody and Cecil Baird will weigh in. I don't think you need to purchase any RRFHM to add to the forage. FHM are the same species just not a fancy color and will do the same thing, just cheaper. You can either wait for the FHM to spawn a few times or add more. Just make sure they are not contaminated with unwanted species.

I would also look at sourcing a couple of non traditional forage species. In your plan, they are very valuable. Bluntnose minnows and spotfin shiners would be my two recommendations. Purchasing just a few dozen of each species if placed into your predator free pond and allows to spawn a couple times will get you what you need numbers wise. Look at http://jonahsaquarium.com/JonahSite/fishlist.htm to source them.

I'd stock the additional forage species and then allow them and your original FHM to spawn this year a few times and then stock your YP this fall...

Good luck!

I suggest something slightly different. I have good experience with several YP only ponds. Generally the larger your stockers the more habituated they are to pellets and will more quickly resume eating pellets once they become accustomed to your new pond setting. Sometimes this can take several weeks. When you buy your stockers try to buy at least some of the feed (5-15 lbs) they have been using to feed those fish. IMO the 6" to 8" 1st time stockers should be okay. However to be even more likely for some to resume eating pellets I would buy a few 8"-10"ers - for 10% maybe 20% of the total number stocked.

I have discovered that if the newly stocked YP have low amounts of natural foods present (mainly minnows), they will more quickly resume eating pellets due primarily to nothing else to eat. If all stockers are pellet habituated they will very likely ignore the minnows as long are you are feeding the perch on a regular basis (5-6 times a week). Generally the bigger the pellet trained YP are the more this is true. Thus what ever minnows are present they will be able to reproduce and populate the pond. Then it is the first hatch of perch that will eat minnows. Some of each year class of the perch will eat pellets and some will eat natural foods. I am going to discuss how to deal with this problem in my new articles about growing yellow perch in ponds - it will likely be a 4 or 5 part series in Pond Boss magazine. I suggest that you subscribe to the magazine so you get copies of the articles. I hope to have all the articles finished for publication this winter and early next spring. I am working on the finishing touches of the remaining pictures and text now.

I have done just what Bill has stated above with the purchase of our perch and did get about 10% 8-10". I stocked a little different then most. We stocked in November and added minnows that fall too. With pellet trained perch in the spring took to the feed very well and left the minnows alone. The minnow populated very well all summer and the perch gobbled up 150#'s of feed. Stocked with 400 6-10" most 7-9".

Pond is warming up but just still so cold here. See frogs and minnows but no perch spawn yet. Soon I hope.

Follow what Bill says works and you will be very happy.

Cheers Don.

edc10 consider getting your bluntnose minnows from a local creek or lake where they are often common. Sometimes a bait shop that collects their own minnows for bait will have bluntnose or know where to get some. A drab colored minnow trap baited with old bread or maybe dog food should allow you to catch 40-80 bluntnose that would serve good as brood stock. Fathead and Bluntnose minnows should survive well long term in a pond with just mostly pellet eating perch. Keep us advised as to your progress. We all can learn from your experiences. Thanks.

Hi Bill,

Thanks for the thorough responses. I am already a Pond Boss subscriber and anxiously await each bi-monthly copy. I am excited to hear that you will be writing a 4-5 part series in the PB magazine on growing yellow perch. Excellent!!! As you know, this is the sole focus of my small pond. Thank you for helping me get off on the right foot. I will be glad to share my progress.

I am picking up my 50 YP tomorrow (20%) 8"-10" and (80%) 6"-8" from Jone Fish, 1.5 hours away (requested the majority to be males). They are bagging the fish in several bags and inflating each with oxygen.

Since I do not have any fish pellets yet, I will be picking up a bag of the pellets they use to limit the feed change so they hopefully stay interested in pellets. Thanks for the suggestion. They sell a 33 lb bag of Ziegler 35% protein mix. I am thinking of buying the Aquamax Grower 500 as soon as I get a supplier.

I will also stock the FHM and Bluntnose minnows as recommended. As I believe it was recommended, it's best to wait to a few weeks before stocking these.

Thanks Bill!

Ed

I would not stock male YP. Why did you choose males?? They grow slower than the females and often the males are not as meaty as females. I doubt Jones can tell males from females at this time of year. IMO Change your order on pick up to mixed sex or just females if they can distinguish between the two.

IMO 35% protein is not good enough for YP unless that is what their YP are now eating. Aquamax grower 500 is a little small for 6"-8" YP. They can eat the AM600.

I thought I read somewhere the majority of YP should be males so the eggs strands get fertilized, and to control populations. I must have misunderstood. I will call this morning and change to mixed, M/F.

The 35% protein feed is what they feed their YP now, so they said. I will continue with what they use, then switch to the AM600.

Thanks for the prompt response. Changing my order now.

This is what I feed my perch and minnows. It is what I would call expensive but great for the young fish. They are local to me here.

Cheers Don.

For a general YP pond, you only need enough male perch to fertilize a few egg ribbons. The average egg ribbon from 7"-9" female YP has around 24,000 eggs that are more than enough fry to keep the population viable.

Here you can get an idea of how many eggs are in a ribbon by counting up all the white dots and extrapolating the ones you don't see if you have too much time on your hands. LOL

In this case the white dots are unfertilized eggs that are dead due to a lack of males in the pond - on purpose.

This ribbon was about 4 to 6 feet long from a perch somewhere in the 13 to almost 15 inch range, which is 90 percent of the ~ 300 yellow perch in this pond.

I've used Martin's when I bought some trout in Michigan. Wish I could get it here.

I don't think they waste one hunk of it. I have used the 5mm in floating mixed with the 2.5 high energy last year and the fish this spring are all 9-10" from 4-6" stocked in November of 2012. They gobbled up 150#'s last year and we have 400 yellow perch. They seem to have done well on the minnows in the pond this winter. Hope really hope we have enough minnow seed to get some more population of them before this fall.

Cheers Don.

Hi Cecil, thanks for the pics...now I know what to look for. Boy, would I like to have 90% of my YP in that 13" to 15" range some day. I am gonna try.

Some of my 6"-8" YP are dying. Lost about 10 of the 40 6" to 8" YP stocked two weeks ago, and I have lost about 2 dozen of the 5 lbs FHM also. I checked the ph of my pond, it is 7.5, and checked the ammonia and it is .75. No more fish loses the past two days. Are there additional water checks I should be testing?

I don't think it is a water quality issue. If every one dies then it could be water quality problem. But if only a percentage die then see next items. When fish die within two weeks of stocking it is almost always due to handling stressors. some fish farms are a lot better at handling fish that other farms similar to many other professions - really good ones, good ones, and not so good ones. Depending on the fish farm, fish can be held too long before being sold and or handling stressors prior to the sale can be harsh. Some fish farms are not real careful with the fish. Fish that have been stressed have a harder time surviving in cold water of early spring. Cold water fungus can be a problem for fish that have had their slime layer damaged. The place where you bought your fish may have mishandled then prior to the sale. I will assume that you did not induce undue stress while hauling & stocking. Reputable fish farms will replace fish that die if you keep track of numbers that die and also it is a good idea to take pictures of all the fish that died as proof.

Thanks Bill. That is good news, as maybe the 40 of the 50 YP stocked will make it. I thought it was strange that after I stocked them (after setting the bags in the water for an hour) that most of them 6" to 8") just stayed by the water's edge and did not swim away. Keeping my finger's crossed. I have left some messages with the fish company folks and just waiting to hear back.

I consider YP sort of dumb. That is normal behavior for some if not most to lie still on the bottom as soon as they are released. When they realize they are in open water then they swim off. I suspect most of the deaths that you had were due to fungus and improper handling somewhere between seining and release. As I mentioned the really reputable fish farms will replace early fish deaths (usu free). If they are smart they value your business and want repeat business and good references. Early cold water stocking can sometimes be 'iffy'. The fish place where you bought the YP and minnows, do they specialize in YP or handle numerous species?

Bill, yes I believe they specialize in YP. I received emails from Jones Fish today and a phone call from their management also. Excellent response. They are completely reimbursing me for my loss.

edc10 - Jones carries numerous fish species. the fish that you received were likely held too long and stressed prior to sale date. It is a common occurrence. It is good business that they are refunding for the dead ones. Maybe try another fish farm next time to learn a little about fish farm diversity. IMO it is best to drive 1-3 hrs to get premium healthy fish.

There are some very good even excellent places in eastern central OH that specialize in growing YP for the food market. I would seriously consider contacting some of them for future purchases of YP, although you will have to go get them yourself. It is usually a very interesting day trip. You will be assured the fish are very healthy and fresh out of the growing tanks as they will likely catch them as you watch. Their perch will be guaranteed to eat fish pellets and grow very well.
Contact Laura Tiu (OSU) or Rob at Ohio Aquaculture Association for a list of YP growers/raisers located in eastern and central Ohio.

http://ohioaquaculture.org/contact.html
http://southcenters.osu.edu/about-us/directory/aquaculture

In searching I found there is a perch grower very near you in Willoughby OH. Contact me using a Private Message for the name, website, and phone number.