If I had to guess, most are still alive & growing fat on all those BG, but are almost uncatchable outside of using live bait. Excess BG have suppressed LMB spawning, too, or you'd have caught some little ones.
+1
Why don't you try to set some brush piles and similar structure in the spots that look most prime? This will help to focus your trophy LMB in places that are predictable where you can fish for them. Try using some live bait. Choose BG in the 4" length or GSH in the 6" to 8" length. Please report back with the results and please comment on growth if you are able.
In your shoes, I'd stock some very aggressive northern strain LMB for both catchability and to crossbreed with the Floridas. I did something similar myself after blundering my initial stocking and have never regretted it.
OK. I think this is great advice if you want to catch LMB more easily. It's just too bad the Camelot Bells are not F1s but pure strains.
Just some quick questions. Were these sold as female only? Do you know if maybe they had been sexed? If they are predominately males, there will not be much if any further growth in the majority. If they are predominately female, then you have trophy water that has tremendous potential so long as it doesn't become infested with male LMB by high water events.
Before you stock any additional LMB you must decide what it is you really want. Fishing in trophy water is very rewarding in terms of the quality of fish you catch but the fishing is going to be slow compared to water that has a higher density of hungry LMB mouths. A deer hunter trying to bag a trophy whitetail generally doesn't return from the hunt in 15 minutes either. Trophy deer require more effort than spikes and forks and it works the same way with trophy LMB.
If trophy water is what you truly want, you must accept that catches will be fewer and you should have a long term plan for maintaining your trophy succession. If the Camelot Bells are sexed females, they represent what I would call the "missing link" for people managing for trophy female only water. Until now, I was aware of no resource for genetically superior adult fish for waters where reproduction of LMB is prevented. in 2 or three years you need to get into a regimen of take 1 LMB/acre add 1 female LMB/acre or take 1 add 2.
