Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Help Central NC Pond Consultant?

Happy New Year Everybody!

I am hoping somebody out there might be able to point me in the right direction. I am working to rejuvenate a neglected older 12 acre pond on our property in central NC. Good fishing is the primary objective. Years ago it fished great (10 + years ago) with very little management, but it has really gone downhill in the past several years. I have done some of the easy stuff - started feeding - put in lots of cover - reduced unwanted vegetation (primarily water shield) and culled out stunted bass as I am able.

Before I just continue with a scatter gun approach I thought it would be money well spent to bring in an expert to evaluate the pond and help me develop a smarter plan for next steps. Fish populations have gotten very low across the board (I think lack of good spawning habitat is the primary culprit) - bottom is increasingly mucky - and forage seems very limited in my uneducated opinion. I have no idea where we stand on water chemistry etc.

Does anybody out there have a recommendation for somebody in my general area that might be able to come in and evaluate the pond for me and based on my goals help me develop a road map to get there? I very much want to do the work myself - just want to be sure I am doing the right work!

Thanks in advance!

- Cullen

Hopefully someone can chime in, I don't know of anyone in SC. What is the closest town?

In any case if you do find someone I would start with an electrofishing survey of the fish population.

Good advice - Thanks. Hopefully somebody out there will have an idea . We are in Summerfield North Carolina - just North of Greensboro.

It occurred to me I could just start google searching pond management in my area - but I sure would feel better finding somebody who has had good experience with a particular outfit...

I would at least contact Solitude Lake Management (South and North Carolina offices) in your region for one opinion or evaluation. They are very good and well experienced with fish surveys and producing and monitoring high quality fisheries. Get at least two opinions for comparison. Also serving your region is Troy Goldsby owner of Aquaservices, Inc.
https://asilakemanagement.com/index.php/electrofishing-fish-stocking/

Tell them Pond Boss referred you to them. There are with no doubt other small pond management firms in the Carolinas. Since you have 12 ac of water, choose one with good experience dealing with larger ponds. Talk is cheap, RESULTS are the proof. Before deciding, get references from them for those with similar sized water bodies they they helped with. References that you actually make contact for the pros and cons of the company.

You could also ask them for a copy of a previous electrofishing report that they did for another customer to see what you'd get from them. While they are electrofishing, they can remove fish that you don't want in there. For instance when we shocked a customers pond last summer we removed all the crappie, catfish and any rough fish that came up. A lot easier and faster than trying to fish them out. We had about 1 1/2 five gallons buckets of crappie. (no water)

Great feedback - thanks so much for taking the time to provide such useful information. I will reach out to both outfits and will happily post a follow up note relaying my experience. I'm assuming it will make the most sense to do the evaluation this spring when the pond has "woken up" (fish, weeds etc.) but will se what the experts say about that. All the best -

Cullen

If you are going to sample the fish population with electricity, and the goal is to remove the undersized bass, then try to schedule it when the bass are on the spawning beds. If you want to target removing some of the small bluegill, see about scheduling the boat for a month after the bass spawn, that is when the BG will be spawning.

The clearer the water the better, it's a lot easier to see and net the fish.