Pond Boss Forums INTRO New Forum Member Introduction New member, old pond: water, algae, etc.

21", 4#.

Probably the same fish that Daniel caught.

Nice fish!

very nice fish and nice place

Thanks to Daniel, we have significantly extended our creel survey results for the year.

We have been removing everything under 14". The PSD shows about 60% > 12" (40% < 12", 40% 12-15", 20% > 15"), which according to Anderson is where we want to be.

Should I be concerned about overcrowding in the 14" group (see histogram)? The average relative weight of the fish in this group approaches 100% but shorter fish generally have higher RWs.

How should we adjust our big bass strategy to reflect this data?

Really nice fish! Where did you buy that measuring device you are using? Looking forward to hearing the experts chime in on your harvesting length limit question.

Amazon.com! Search for "hawg trough" or "bump board."

5/2013:



7/2015

Looks like good progress and excellent results !!!!!

Thanks, Eric!

Any comment on the 12-14" fish?

Yes if it was May data then the LMB were in or just through the spawn. A fish male or female can lose a lot of weight during the spawn. I have seen data suggesting it is not uncommon for a LMB to lose 15 - 25 % of its weight during the spawn.

The latest dataset is from this month. Does the 12-14" group look crowded?

Have you thought about keeping all fish in the 12-15" range that have a RW below 100? If it was my pond that is the direction I would go in but I am not an expert.

We definitely do that. But all classes are well above 100 except for 13-14". No fish under 14" goes back in.

Yes - the 12-14 inch size are likely a high % male LMB who would have been spawning and had weight loss - if the data was may data. I would take samples again in early oct and see what that size class shows.

Thank you for clarifying!

Any updates? This thread is great info.

No updates on fish populations at the moment. We have been able to remove a couple of the channel cats, though!

This one had corralled a school of BG YOY and was caught with a 1/4 oz roostertail on 6# test. 27", 7.9#, 85% RW taken on July 21st by my brother, Thomas.

We have continued a selective harvest program, pulling all LMB under 14". It has definitely paid off.

I did about 8 hours of fishing over 3 days last week, and I caught nothing but quality fish. They ranged from 16-18", and the best was a 3.92#, 18.25" fatty clocking in at about 120% RW (pictured). Don't bring your crappie rod to Two Mile Prairie Pond!

Well done sir! That's a beautiful healthy fish!

Q: How do you catch largemouth two days after an end-of-year ice-out in 34F water?

A: Burn a lipless crankbait as fast as you can.

This fish appears at least 120 - well done bro. Your culling project is definitely paying dividends.