I came across this thread looking for some more information on OSS and SMB. It just happed to have a ton of info I was curious about.
I soon may be able to add to this conversation. I will be doing some baitfish seining this spring. My goal is a diverse pond. I have been getting some fish from Snipe and following some of his advice, and I have gone my own direction a few times before asking him for advice. My Pond was constructed summer of 2020. 4.5-5 acres, 4 deep holes of greater than 15 foot. 2 acres of shallow wetland. Rip-raped dam. Clay Bottom. Central Kansas I-70 Corridor. Average depth when full around 9 Ft in spring and in Fall 6 Ft.
Baitfish Species Stocked:
Fatheads
Bluntnose
Red shiners
Creek Chubs
Gambusia
Golden Shiners
Goldfish (yes I know that was Dumb)
Panfish Species Stocked:
Orange Spotted Sunfish
Longear sunfish
Bluegill
Redear
Yellow Perch
Predators:
Wallyeye
Saugeye
Smallmouth
Albino Catfish
Un-Wanted Species Present: Came in when pond filled. In the process of heavy culling.
Bullhead
Green sunfish
I Stocked pretty light on my species as far as numbers per acre and got the yellow perch and smallmouth bass in a bit later than planned. My Walleye and Saugeye may now be stocked a bit high due to ladder stocking them. At the moment WE and SAE seem to be controlling BG numbers but it also may be to early to tell as some of the eyes should still be young. My hope is that the BG, LES, and OSS will help feed the SMB and Eyes. I put the LES and OSS in thinking their smaller size may feed some predator fish through the colder feeding months due to their smaller size and the BG reproduction will produce enough to feed them though the warmer heavy feeding months. A few of my YP should be spawning this spring but only had about 30-40 that will be old enough.
I hope one of my bait species starts to shine above the others. Right now the fish seem to be growing well across the board. I am seeing some of my medium sized BG and RES (3-5in) looking a touch light but not terrible. I do not seem to have a overpopulated BG population and have fish across all size classes. I know this is not conventional stocking but it is what I wanted to do. Hopefully I will be able to report back with some more observations.
Pond is fished frequently (3-4 times a week) only fish culled are BH and GSF up to this point. Hybridization has been witnessed in the panfish species,
All species have been caught, seined, or witnessed by some method in the past year.
I have enjoyed all your comments on this thread, and hope they keep coming!
Steve
Last edited by Donatello; 03/27/24 03:13 PM.
