We started a largemouth bass pond nearly from scratch around 5 years ago. The population has done extremely well and we are very active management with the pond constantly harvesting 20 to 25 pounds of bass per acre annually. We see an abundance of 3 to 5 pound bass which is pretty big for Kansas but are not seeing anything bigger than that. I have heard mixed results about adding gizzard shad but our end goal is to have as big of bass as possible. Do we stock Shad this spring? The pond will very likely be expanded from 20 to 40-50 acres in the future as well if that changes any opinions and unfortunately crappie also got into the pond somehow but they are very few in number.
If crappie "somehow" showed up on the pond, you may have little control of what gets added. Unless you can identify and eliminate the source of unwanted stocking, your management will likely be limited to what you harvest (if you cann control that).
How are you turning a 20 acre lake into a 40/50 acre lake? I bet it's a huge undertaking!
Where I live most lakes of this size are fed with a small creek. The watershed that feeds the creek usually has multiple farm ponds in the acreage. I'd suspect that high water events let's fish to be stocked from those ponds. Unless your lake is somewhat public then someone could have bucketstocked it.
I believe crappie survived the initial draining and killing of the pond in one area so that’s how they are in there. The lake is completely isolated and will not be contaminated further I am 100% sure of this. That is why I am asking if gizzard Shad would be a beneficial addition.
I believe a gizzard shad population in Kansas can fairly easily grow past the ability of "Kansas sized" northern LMB to consume the largest members. You then have the possibility of gizzard shad being a significant percentage of the total fish carrying capacity of your pond.
I have seen one poorly managed lake that was BG/LMB/CC and gizzard shad that suffered a massive fish kill. The huge proportion of dead fish were gizzard shad that ranged in size between 8-15". You had to scan the floaters pretty diligently to pick out the LMB.
[One of the good books in the Pond Boss library also warns against gizzard shad unless you have gigantic LMB, in my recollection.]
In a Kansas lake of that size, I would feed my BG commercial food (to grow the LMB), and try to get a good population of Golden Shiners going which also can get large enough to feed 6lb+ LMB.
I would also deliberately fish for flatheads. In a lake of that size, you could possibly have a couple of 40# flatheads that can and will eat 5lb+ LMB!
[I am definitely NOT an expert. Just saying what I have seen fishing bodies of waters in Kansas since I was big enough to hold a tiny Zebco rod and reel.]
Yeah I have definitely noticed bass ponds around here that have Shad that are too big for almost any bass to eat. We have introduced golden shiners but was just looking for some opinions on gizzard Shad if the goal is to grow giant bass beyond the five or six pound mark. Don’t want to mess up a pond that is producing quality fish but really want to do anything in our power to enhance the fishery. There aren’t any flatheads in the lake as we have shocked and applied rotenone when the pond was barely full and saw none. Thanks for your input!
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."
i think its been quoted around here that "i've never seen a trophy bass pond that didn't have gizzard shad present". Now take that with some caution of course. This could be in further south than you are - I'd key on an above comment which mentioned Kansas may not be trophy bass country by location/available genetics etc.
I think threadfin shad would be a great additional forage species for the size of trophy LMB in this lake.
However, KC Kansas is probably going to be too cold to sustain a population. With the available deepwater refuge, they might survive a mild winter. I suspect it would be very difficult to keep them for several years.
Literature suggests their lower temperature range is 42F.
I am on a much smaller body of water than you are and much earlier in the process of growing my fish as well. I looked the world over for threadfin shad in Kansas and couldn't come up with a supplier. As a result, I substituted Tilapia for Threadfin on spring stocking and as the fish grow will likely do some research on Rainbow Trout for Fall.
Tilapia do not fall into the same niche in the pond as Threadfins but they are available in the KC area and there's info out there on using them as additional forage that will ultimately save some of the BG from predation thus bolstering the BG numbers in the fall after the Tilapia have died or been gorged on as they start to struggle in lower temps. Path of the RBT as I understand it is very similar to the Tilapia in the Spring as the water temps warm and they struggle LMB gorge on them as well.
Looks like you are going on 5yrs on the BoW. Have you had a survey done to see if there are recommendations or what the populations are looking like? There might need to be an update to the 20-25lbs per acre culling you are currently doing to take your fish to the next weight bracket.
1.5acre LMB, YP, BG, RES, GSH, Seasonal Tilapia I subscribe to Pond Boss Magazine
I used a guy out of Hutchinson, KS this year. This supplier is not listed in the resources but delivered fish to the pond at a pretty reasonable price. they did well in the pond and are still producing babies as far as I can tell. Happy to provide contact info if you want it. Gave you my cell in PM. Not sure if I can list it here....
I think either way you go it's about a 3-4hr haul to get to them if you want to pick up.
What I'd really like to find is a supplier for Blue Tilapia. I might have to look into growing my own after we get the house built on the property in the future.
Last edited by Boondoggle; 07/27/2410:42 PM.
1.5acre LMB, YP, BG, RES, GSH, Seasonal Tilapia I subscribe to Pond Boss Magazine
Good info above on possible late season use of Tilapia as forage only. For KS, I am guessing, but I think we will hit the lethal cold temp for Tilapia every year for 100% winterkill no matter the species between Blue, Moz or mixed.
CJ, the blues as I have watched them feed less at around 58-60. Pretty much the same on the Moz. That is as real-world as my "sluggish" experience gets.
This is the reason why my quest continues for blues. Sluggish but not dead at the lower feeding temp of LMB. Once the Tilapia are gone the predators in the BoW will be on whatever other forage the BoW produced for the season. A cold front rolling through might zap the Moz. Water temps increase a bit and the blues will still be around for a bit and ultimately extend the window for potential sluggish forage / gorging. I will continue to stock the Moz until I can find a source for Blues but until then Mozambique or Mix will have to do.
I've had Blues alive but VERY sluggish in 48°F water. I've had other tilapia that were sold as blues die at 58¯F water temp. I no longer use that supplier.
I think threadfin shad would be a great additional forage species for the size of trophy LMB in this lake.
However, KC Kansas is probably going to be too cold to sustain a population. With the available deepwater refuge, they might survive a mild winter. I suspect it would be very difficult to keep them for several years.
Literature suggests their lower temperature range is 42F.
Coffey County Lake now has a population of threading shad.
I think threadfin shad would be a great additional forage species for the size of trophy LMB in this lake.
However, KC Kansas is probably going to be too cold to sustain a population. With the available deepwater refuge, they might survive a mild winter. I suspect it would be very difficult to keep them for several years.
Literature suggests their lower temperature range is 42F.
Coffey County Lake now has a population of threading shad.
I'm an hour south of that lake... do you know how long they've been in there? How many winters have they survived?
Thanks for the link BD. My son and I saw an alligator at Squaw Creek Reservoir here where there is also a nuclear power plant. About 3 or 4 feet long while fishing for blue tilapia. Brings back memories.
It isn't what we don't know that gives us trouble, it's what we know that ain't so - Will Rogers
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