My son in law made the decision. He had his rangefinder out. (51 yards) Plus he was showing us his backside. We thought he’d come over to check out the hen decoy. Unfortunately he had two real hens with him. Never got closer than 75 yards after that. In our field for two hours. Strut the whole time. Still exciting though. I think our SMB population is the most healthy one in the pond. The YP numbers don’t seem as strong as a few years ago. The RES numbers are good, but we don’t see many over 5/6”. The HSB must have not survived the stocking as none have ever been seen (in 5 yrs). The water is as clear as we’ve ever seen it. The SMB hang out just off the banks. Mostly at north and south ends of the pond. They were visible the last few days, either laying in wait, or cruising in packs from 3 to 6. You could throw out a GS and watch one of the pack peel off and go for the GS.
9 yr old pond, 1 ac, 15' deep. RES, YP, GS, FHM (no longer), HBG (going away), SMB, and HSB (only one seen in 5 yrs) Restocked HSB (2020) Have seen one of these. I think that's about all I should put in my little pond. Otter attack in 2023
