Well one option and it is a slim one is lots and lots of crayfish. I have had now feed the same amount of feed over the past three years if not more this year. We had the least amount of FA in our pond this year then any year yet. We do have the most crayfish in our pond this past year then any year before.

We have the perfect habitat for crayfish. 4" to 3/4" mixed stone 12 feet long from shore to a depth of about 5-6 feet all around the pond. Its is about 12"s thick till the clay. The perch are eating the crayfish first when the new crop arrives in the spring. They will eat the less than 1" size and all the fish we harvest all have crayfish in them.

The first year with out crayfish we had allot of FA and fed about 150# of feed and every year after that the FA has been less and less. One thing could be that our fish were not eating the feed we were putting into the pond and now they are eating it all. It may be just that I was over feeding the fish and three years later the fish are eating all the feed with being bigger and more little ones eating the feed.

I do think the pond dye and keeping the air running at night keeps the pond cooler slowing the growth of FA too. The crayfish could be eating some but not as much as we did have.

I think the over feeding and water temp is the biggest factors.

Cheers Don.

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7/8th of an acre, Perch only pond, Ontario, Canada.