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Jan 10th, 2023
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Joined: Apr 2012
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OP
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 25 |
I have a fairly small pond, it's 30x80 or so. Getting some 'new' trout to try out, some steelhead rainbows. My friend has a fairly new hatchery and he's giving me a discount on them, so figured what they hey...
anyhow, I know it's a pipe dream, but what could a person do to raise their chances of the steeheads spawning in a pond? I think the temperature will allow them to survive the summer, but it'll be close. This summer with virtually zero flow I had 77 degrees at the top of the water, I have since put about 20 GPM flow into the pond from a nice cold spring.
Any suggestions? I'm hoping this will work out, if not I'm just gonna fill her up with some channel cats ;-)
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You'll need moving water with gravel and stone for them to have any chance of successfully spawning.
Trout are so cheap I wouldn't even consider natural spawning. If they will survive the summer then just buy some each year or every few years IMHO.
I have my doubts 20 gpm is enough for your latitude and size of your pond to keep it cool enough and ammonia and nitrites flushed. My trout pond is 55 by 88 and I run in 45 gpm and my summers are not as hot and as long as yours.
Last edited by Cecil Baird1; 10/15/12 10:34 PM.
If pigs could fly bacon would be harder to come by and there would be a lot of damaged trees.
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Joined: Apr 2012
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I want an overabundance of nutrients in the water as the primary purpose is to water/fertilize the blueberries. I just figured it would be worth it to give some trout a try. I do know the channel cats have been reproducing in the pond, so i may just go there. I do not intend to pay someone every few years to stock the pond though, to me that would negate the purpose of stocking the pond.
I wish I could find some cheap around here, I have been speaking with some people who say they have fingerlings for less than a dollar each, but they won't ever actually sell them to me, they just keep saying they will, then won't answer the phone again... The only person I've found who said "yeah sure, you want them now?" wants $3.50 per fish. To heck with that. I'm guessing I'll just keep throwing channel cats in every so often and hope for the best, businesses around this area are very silly, none of them really want anyone's patronage...
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Joined: Apr 2012
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Joined: Apr 2012
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as far as our summers, they're really not that hot, I live in the mountains, so we might get a few days of 100 degree weather, but usually not more than a week. I am worried about the heat and the trout though, I just prefer to clean trout over catfish...
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Joined: Aug 2006
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Check with Southeast Pond Stocking, over in Currie, NC. If they don't have any, they may be able to tell you where you can get some locally. They travel throughout NC and VA. (If you Google them, you will get their phone numbers and e-mail.)
As for steelhead vs., rainbow -- by eye, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference. I grew up catching "steelhead." But, that was only because that is what they were called if the rainbow made it down the Brule River into Lake Superior, and returned to the river to spawn when we were catching them.
I'm not sure there is any real biological differences between a rainbow and a steelhead, except for color during spawning. Maybe somebody else can further clarify.
Lastly, where you (goober) are located, you shouldn't have any problem keeping winter trout, and maybe even year-around trout, depending on your pond's water source.
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Basically the same fish. Steelhead are open water fish that return to their native stream/river to spawn. They can spawn many times. They always return to the open water after spawning till they eventually die. (technically sea run, but they have been introduced to many large lakes)
RBT never venture out to the open waters of a large lake or ocean.
Steelhead will also get much bigger than a RBT, in the same time frame.
There are specialty breeders of specifically the Steelhead strain's. They call them Steelhead for specific reasons, rather than RBT, and I'm not going to argue with these serious pro's.
Ever think of stocking a few Coho in your pond? That would be interesting.
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Joined: Aug 2002
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Well actually Phil, some rainbows will and do venture out into the open waters of lakes or an ocean. But essentially what you say is correct. Steelhead have a stronger tendency to migrate during spawning just like Pacific Salmon.
Even brown trout, brook trout, and cutthroats, and various species of char, all will have some individual that ascend streams or venture out into the open water or salt water.
They're known as sea trout, coasters, sea run cuts, and sea run char respectively where they are located.
Sea trout are not to be confused with the saltwater fish of the same name in the southern and eastern U.S.
Last edited by Cecil Baird1; 10/17/12 12:07 PM.
If pigs could fly bacon would be harder to come by and there would be a lot of damaged trees.
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Joined: Aug 2002
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Hall of Fame Lunker
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I want an overabundance of nutrients in the water as the primary purpose is to water/fertilize the blueberries. I just figured it would be worth it to give some trout a try. I do know the channel cats have been reproducing in the pond, so i may just go there. I do not intend to pay someone every few years to stock the pond though, to me that would negate the purpose of stocking the pond.
I wish I could find some cheap around here, I have been speaking with some people who say they have fingerlings for less than a dollar each, but they won't ever actually sell them to me, they just keep saying they will, then won't answer the phone again... The only person I've found who said "yeah sure, you want them now?" wants $3.50 per fish. To heck with that. I'm guessing I'll just keep throwing channel cats in every so often and hope for the best, businesses around this area are very silly, none of them really want anyone's patronage...
If you're looking for an abundance of nitrates you'll be hard pressed to get them unless your pond has a very high density of fish. That's because phytoplankton, filamentous algae, and macrophytes do a good job of up taking nitrates in a pond. Been there and tried it. That's not saying you wouldn't have a source of phosphorus to use if you feed your fish. Even in a densely populated aquaculture pond where I had issues briefly with high ammonia and nitrites my nitrates were very low at only 4 or 5 ppm. Aquaponics are a different story because there is no competition in the actual fish water for nitrates, so they can and will build up enough to be beneficial to the plants.
Last edited by Cecil Baird1; 10/17/12 12:08 PM.
If pigs could fly bacon would be harder to come by and there would be a lot of damaged trees.
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Joined: Jul 2005
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Lunker
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Lunker
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Even brown trout, brook trout, and cutthroats, and various species of char, and will ascend streams or venture out into the open water or salt water. Here is a sea run cutthroat from Puget Sound, something in their diet there gives them a unique yellow tint to their fins. I catch at least one of these every time I visit my folks new place in WA. This year I caught a 6" King salmon smolt, last year I caught a small steelhead off of their beach. 
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Joined: Dec 2009
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Hall of Fame 2015 Lunker
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Hall of Fame 2015 Lunker
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Pretty cool Shorty! I was collecting shiners with a cast net off the north pier in Grand Haven, on Lake Michigan. I got back and dumped them into a tank. There was this one speeding bullet going like crazy, and I have a WT? moment. It was a little 4" Chinook (King). Pretty cool to see, but I promptly returned him to LM. That was jail bait! (pun intended  ) It's illegal to collect bait fish and take them home now 
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Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 4
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Joined: Oct 2012
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JKB, you mentioned the idea of stocking coho salmon? Do you know of any fish farms that has them or kokanee even? It seems that all I can find are state hatcheries and I'm not sure they sell to private owners
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Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 6,692
Hall of Fame 2015 Lunker
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Hall of Fame 2015 Lunker
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 6,692 |
JKB, you mentioned the idea of stocking coho salmon? Do you know of any fish farms that has them or kokanee even? It seems that all I can find are state hatcheries and I'm not sure they sell to private owners Don't know about Colorado, but there are several fish farms in MI that raise Coho. Pretty sure there are more in other states, especially west of here. You can buy eyed eggs from Pedigree Stock out of Washington, but the minimum order and setting up the hatchery might be on the expensive side. Not to mention being labor intensive. Cecil mentioned that at a recent Aquaculture Conference in WI, that Coho are the way to go. Hell, I've known that for 10 years! (Bob Seger Quote)  Arctic Charr would be another possibility, and there is an increase on Atlantic Salmon being propagated here. One of the MAA guys started a new fish farm, and they have Arctic Grayling as an offering! That is rare!
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