Rebalancing a Pond with Black Bullhead Catfish

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Rebalancing a Pond with Black Bullhead Catfish #560027 07/27/23 01:50 PM
Joined: May 2006 Posts: 253 Likes: 10 Jacksonvile, FL J J. E. Craig OP Lunker
OP J. E. Craig Lunker J Joined: May 2006 Posts: 253 Likes: 10 Jacksonvile, FL	A 3-acer pond has over the years become out of balance; the LMB have relative weights at 75% & below. Twenty years ago, I saw black balls of just hatched BBC. I have not seen this phenomenon in the last 15 years. Ten years ago, I attempted to fish out as many BBC as I could. I have begun to remove adult fish & thought I would start with the BBCs. After four 17-inch fish I have hit a stone wall. I have used all types of bait had a line out most every day for 2 weeks but all I get is an empty hook or a turtle. Could the BBCs be almost extinct in the pond?

Re: Rebalancing a Pond with Black Bullhead Catfish J. E. Craig #560039 07/28/23 09:27 AM
Joined: Sep 2003 Posts: 13,969 Likes: 350 Somerset, PA Sunil Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker
Sunil Moderator Ambassador Field Correspondent Hall of Fame 2014 Lunker Joined: Sep 2003 Posts: 13,969 Likes: 350 Somerset, PA	At my main pond (4.5 acres) we used to have tons of bullheads and you would regularly catch them when trying to catch other species of fish. Then, we had a bullhead fishing derby and I think we took out maybe 100 or so bullheads, but I can't recall exactly the number. Around that time, I also had an electrofishing boat shock the pond for a few hours and we culled all bullheads that came up. Since those two events, we rarely see any bullheads anymore. Excerpt from Robert Crais' "The Monkey's Raincoat:" "She took another microscopic bite of her sandwich, then pushed it away. Maybe she absorbed nutrients from her surroundings."

Re: Rebalancing a Pond with Black Bullhead Catfish Sunil #562109 10/24/23 06:32 PM
Joined: May 2006 Posts: 253 Likes: 10 Jacksonvile, FL J J. E. Craig OP Lunker
OP J. E. Craig Lunker J Joined: May 2006 Posts: 253 Likes: 10 Jacksonvile, FL	I had not seen or caught a BullHead since the end of July. I thought & hoped they were gone. Then the first week in OCT. while fishing for LMB with a plastic BG, I was extremely startled when a bullhead hit the lure hard but not much of a fight after that. I think it has been the water temperature. It was warm in July but got up to 91 degrees in late Aug -Sept. I will start fishing again for them now that the water is down to 72. I hope to remove enough predators to rebalance the pond. All the LMB are 75% relative weight.