Pond Boss Magazine
https://www.pondboss.com/images/userfiles/image/20130301193901_6_150by50orangewhyshouldsubscribejpeg.jpg
Advertisment
Newest Members
Shotgun01, Dan H, Stipker, LunkerHunt23, Jeanjules
18,451 Registered Users
Forum Statistics
Forums36
Topics40,902
Posts557,115
Members18,452
Most Online3,612
Jan 10th, 2023
Top Posters
esshup 28,419
ewest 21,475
Cecil Baird1 20,043
Bill Cody 15,112
Who's Online Now
3 members (esshup, Bobbss, teehjaeh57), 728 guests, and 251 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
#50855 12/14/04 12:15 PM
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 39
G
GlenB Offline OP
Member
OP Offline
Member
G
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 39
I stocked my new 1 acre pond about a month ago with 250 BG, 100 Redear, 4# FH minnows, 4# Golden Shiners, and 50 4"-6" Channel Cat fingerlings.

Other than the first week after stocking, I've seen very little "movement" activity, top water ripples, etc. or sightings of this initial stocking.

I've thrown out about 3 coffee cans of fish food within the last month.

Last Staurday, my wife & I walked the pond. We saw a few small ripples. But, the worst sight I had was 4 dead BG's, each about 3"-4", in about 18" of water plus a few dead FH's.--no sightings--dead or alive of any CC's or others.

Is this something I should be alarmed about? Do I have the whole stocking laying dead on their sides in deeper water? Or, is the population just "dormat", not moving around much, etc.?

The average depth in the deeper end is 6'-8' (12' deepest)18"-3' in the shallower areas. I placed brush piles and rock structures per Lusk's book and postings on this forum.

During the day, I can see to a depth of about 4'-5'. I haven't tried "spotlighting" other than trying my truck lights on brights. Still seeing no fish! \:\(

Your thoughts, please?


#50856 12/14/04 12:29 PM
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,075
M
Lunker
Offline
Lunker
M
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,075
GlenB,

My thoughts...not to worry. Most likely everything is fine. This time of year you wouldn't expect to see any fish come to the feed, especially little ones newly stocked. I would expect to see some FH around the edges of the water, but even the absense of that wouldn't be cause for concern.
When spring gets here and you start feeding again if you don't see any activity after a couple of weeks...then get concerned. The few dead ones you are seeing are probably from the trama of the initial stocking.

#50857 12/16/04 12:13 PM
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 48
T
Lunker
Offline
Lunker
T
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 48
After the initial stocking of my pond in the fall I went months without seeing any evidence of fish. Made me nervous, thinking that they all died and sunk to the bottom. But by the next spring, I saw fish everywhere.

#50858 12/16/04 04:08 PM
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 39
G
GlenB Offline OP
Member
OP Offline
Member
G
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 39
Well, guess I'll keep checking every few days and wait until spring for confirmation that they're alive & well!

Thanks for the input. \:\)

#50859 12/27/04 12:56 AM
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 21
R
Member
Offline
Member
R
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 21
GlenB, I just stocked my new 4 acre with 1000 channels, 800 Coppernose, 600 Red Ear and 22 lbs of Fathead minnows about the same time as you and haven't seen any activity either except the minnows. Since I know they are alive maybe the fish made it. I was concerned but everyone tells me to wait to spring also to see what I have. Can't hardly wait.


Richard
#50860 12/27/04 12:59 PM
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,075
M
Lunker
Offline
Lunker
M
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,075
RatherBFishin,

I'm interested in what you find in the spring relative to the redears. Three years ago, I stocked 1000 redears (along with a bunch of other fish) into a 3.5 acre pond in East Texas and they completely disappeared by the following spring. Other fish did great, but the redears disappeared without a trace.

#50861 12/27/04 09:43 PM
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 3,346
Likes: 97
Editor, Pond Boss Magazine
Lunker
Offline
Editor, Pond Boss Magazine
Lunker
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 3,346
Likes: 97
GlenB..It does bother me you saw dead fish. Mortality a month after stocking is unusual. I expect your fish stocking to be fine. Don't expect fish to come to fish food this time of year. Cooler water temps slow fish metabolism rates, and food requirements diminish. And, the number of fish you stocked is fairly low, so I wouldn't expect to see much action, until spring. Stop feeding for now, restart in the second week of March for your location. After fish become accustomed to the pond, and reproduce a few times, you will begin to see activity. If you feed the fish consistently, and don't see feeding activity by mid to late May, then you may have a better reason to be concerned.


Teach a man to grow fish...
He can teach to catch fish...

Link Copied to Clipboard
Today's Birthdays
cro, HC1968
Recent Posts
Relative weight charts in Excel ? Calculations?
by esshup - 03/29/24 01:06 AM
pond experience needed
by esshup - 03/29/24 12:45 AM
Alum vs Bentonite/Lathanum for Phosphorus Removal?
by FishinRod - 03/28/24 08:28 PM
New pond middle TN: establishing food chain?
by Bill Cody - 03/28/24 07:57 PM
Happy Birthday Bob Lusk!!
by FireIsHot - 03/28/24 07:33 PM
Working on a .5acre disaster, I mean pond.
by PRCS - 03/28/24 06:39 PM
Fungus infection on fish
by nvcdl - 03/28/24 06:07 PM
Can anyone ID these minnows?
by Dylanfrely - 03/28/24 05:43 PM
1 year after stocking question
by esshup - 03/28/24 04:48 PM
Yellow Perch Spawn 2024
by H20fwler - 03/28/24 04:29 PM
New 2 acre pond stocking plan
by LANGSTER - 03/28/24 03:49 PM
Paper-shell crayfish and Japanese snails
by esshup - 03/28/24 10:39 AM
Newly Uploaded Images
Eagles Over The Pond Yesterday
Eagles Over The Pond Yesterday
by Tbar, December 10
Deer at Theo's 2023
Deer at Theo's 2023
by Theo Gallus, November 13
Minnow identification
Minnow identification
by Mike Troyer, October 6
Sharing the Food
Sharing the Food
by FishinRod, September 9
Nice BGxRES
Nice BGxRES
by Theo Gallus, July 28
Snake Identification
Snake Identification
by Rangersedge, July 12

� 2014 POND BOSS INC. all rights reserved USA and Worldwide

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5