jpsdad, thank you for the post up. Well thought out I think. And something to think about. I hope to grow some of the lmb to the 13# range within the next 3 to 4 yrs. These Floridia's came from Todd Overton and the genetics are great.
where did you obtain this information or was it something you came up with? Either way it looks good. I believe I am in the numbers of forage needed (based on your chart)at this time. And the hsb along with some of the northern lmb are hand feed Purina lmb 4 to 5 days per week. But I will keep an eye on the size and the numbers to maintain the lmb growth.
Tracy,
The only pertinent calculation in the spreadsheet is the one that calculates the forage required for maintenance and growth of the selected LMB. 5 lbs forage to 1 lb LMB is assumed for maintenance while 10 lbs is assumed to grow a pound. In the real world, some fish would outperform these assumptions while others underperform. In any event, these are widely accepted conversion ratios that do have research behind them. The SS isn't protected so if you like you can play with the assumptions, add additional rows, and see how the scenario changes with different goals.
One reason for posting it was to demonstrate the extent to which large LMB must be limited number in order to grow really large LMB. This particular plan allows only 8 LMB/acre spread across 5 year classes (or at least 5 years of selection. These 8 LMB/acre are forecasted to weigh an average of 5.83 lbs which IMHO would be a remarkable achievement and one that requires considerable effort.
I think your goals can be met. Perhaps ironically, I do also think some of the predation has been a blessing in disguise to keep the surviving original stockers growing at their optimum. Do I remember correctly that 50 Lonestars/acre were originally stocked? To make 13 lbs, there may need to be some additional mortality, either by you or the otters. By the time they reach 10 lbs they will require 50 lbs forage each to stay at 10 lbs.
I think feeding the HSB and FT Northern LMB helps take pressure of the forage allowing your Floridas and Hybrid LMB to forage with less competition. It also fertilizes the water. But you have consider that as they grow, they also need more feed for maintenance and they will contribute to limitations of space, DO, and other key variables your trophies and prey need. Just something to think about.
One of my reason for asking these questions of how many is because of all the forage that is in the pond. Tp,cnbg.res,tfs. The Hsb also contribute to my questioning as to how many lbs per acre of fish? I plan to start culling some hsb and lmb this fall. I would remind you we had no lmb spawn or fry survival until the 3rd spring/last year 2018. I also added some res, cnbg fhm and gsh this spring.
The tfs and Tp are helping you more than they hurting you with the DO as a limiting factor. They should be keeping your water clearer than without them which means phytoplankton (and other algal standing weights) are lower. Nightly drawdowns should not be as deep as they would be without them. Furthermore, their presence can introduce an inhibiting effect on the standing weights of other prey species by intercepting the food chain at the primary level. If they are numerous, this is probably happening. I don't think the prey is a top concern here but the standing weights of fish supported outside the food chain (the fish you feed)are a greater concern.
