Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Skinny Fish

I stocked my 3 acre pond last year, 1000 bream per acre along with Fathead minnows. I added my bass A few months later. The fish are growing well (length) They are 9 and 1/2 inches long but only weigh about 4 oz. The pond was really low during the summer, so we dug some extra ditches for depth the water became real muddy. Could that be the problem? How can I get the weight on my fish? I tried real hard to get things balanced from the start, but it seems things are already unbalanced. You can visibly see that the fish are skinny. I also have several blue herons in the area, can the eat enough of the minnows and small bream to alter the food chain?

What months did you stock which species and can you determin the current health of you bream population?

How many bass did you stock? The min amount of "bream" I would recommend in 3 acre pond is 1500 and 3,000 is better. I would on the otherhand stock 150-300 bass depending on goals. If you stocked more bass than 150 this could be the problem, and I suggest harvesting a good percentage of the bass to obtain better growth.

I Stocked 300 Bass about 3 months after stocking 3000 bream and the recommended number of fathead minnows(I cant remember now). Can I stock more minnows now or should I just take some of the bass out? Do you think the muddy water affected their growth? Thanks for your help!

Sorry misread the post. I thought you stocked 1,000 bream total. It sounds like you stocked it properly. At this point I think the fatheads will be eaten up as quickly as they are stocked and would not be $$ smart. The muddy conditions could have lowered the primary productivity of the pond. Do you fertilize or have a supplemental feeding program? If not next year those management efforts should help. ALso feeding the bluegill will help get an idea of their populaiton, if really low stocking more intermediate bluegill may be the answer to poor bass growth.

I did fertilize last spring. I also have a nice fish feeder. The Bluegill population seems to be thriving and they were all fat and healthy during the summer when they were actively feeding. I had several different sizes of bream which led me to believe they had spawned already. This is why I was a little surprised with my skinny bass.

Do nothing over winter.
Next spring, restart your feeding program, and prepare to decide to fertilize once water has risen, and temps are constantly in the 60's. Clear water, fertilize. Low visibility, let's talk.
Too early to worry about bass growth. Focus on the food chain, then make decisions about your bass next summer based on water clarity and pond size. Your pond is small enough to make drastic changes if need be. But, as long as you are seeing variation of sizes of bluegill, and your feeding program is working, make decisions about bass later.
If, by mid-summer, you weigh and measure 30-40 bass, and compare relative weights at that point, and 80% of your fish are seriously underweight, consider culling.
My experience has shown newly stocked lakes are resilient enough early on to correct themselves, unless bad decisions in the beginning doomed the fishery.
Your decisions were solid. Stay with them, for now.
Blue herons are probably not relevant for your situation. Even though they eat fish, their impact is minimal for the big picture.
Muddy water definitely has an impact on bass growth. Bass are primarily sight feeders. But, it's a double-edge sword. Muddy water protects bluegill and fathead minnows.
When your lake fills, forage fish will spread out, spawn well. As well, bass will spread out, food will increase, and bass should grow actively.

Ditto, as usual Bob very well said.