Thread: New pond stocking?

Bass, bluegill and catfish make a good threesome.

Bass, bluegill and channel cat are fine. Pond is too small for crappie. They will overpopulate very quickly. No flathead catfish. They'll eat or kill everything else in the pond.

Channel cats have some significant drawbacks such that many pond consultants these days, myself included, advise pond owners to think twice before stocking them. The two main issues they bring are that they are extremely prone to becoming hook-shy, moreso than any other freshwater species; generally once they have been hooked once, they don't get hooked again, even on live or cut bait. The other issue is that they greatly relish pelleted fish food, and will hog it to the detriment of other species you may be trying to feed, such as bluegill. These two issues together create a double-whammy in ponds that have had channel cats a few years and in which the fish are also fed: they get up to eight or ten or twelve pounds, a size at which each fish can eat an astounding number of pellets in one feeding, and they won't bite your hook because you hooked them when they weighed two pounds, so they eat up most of the feed and keep it from your other fish but you can't catch them so they're essentially just wrecking any sort of management you try to effect on the pond. They also take a lot of forage away from the bass when they get past two or three pounds.

I would recommend bluegill and bass.

I have no problem with not stocking crappie,but perch appeals to me.As far as cats,I prefer them over bass,but I understand some of what your saying,what if I castrate the cats .As far as gills,should I stock a variety,or try to keep it pure as much as nature permits?

When I stocked our pond I was told to stock with small mouth bass, three types of gills & yellow perch. The pond had a few large mouth in it (from friends that thought I wanted what they caught in the area lake). The place we bought our fish from told us to remove large mouth when they reached 14" or the will eat all our gills. We feed them twice a day with hi pro food and those gills grow fast. I guess it's up to you what kinda fishing you want to do, we wanted a big bluegill pond for the kids and me of course

If by variety of bluegill you mean pure-strain and hybrid, stocking both will ruin the genetics of both. Hybrid bluegill are only good genetically for the initial stockers; after that they're subject to outbreeding depression, which means their offspring have inferior growth potential. I would recommend against hybrid bluegill. If on the other hand you meant bluegill and redear, it's good to stock both of those species.

Also, if you want big bluegill, stock a high number of largemouth, 200 per acre, and don't keep any at all, ever. Stock 500 bluegill and 200 bass per acre, and only keep bluegill between 7.5" or 8" and 9", and release the smaller and larger ones. Don't keep more than 50 or so bluegill per acre per year. Feed a high-protein, fishmeal-based food such as Purina Aquamax or Zeigler, ideally twice a day from an automatic feeder. Will the pond be in West Virginia?

Yes the pond will be in WV.I would not stock hybrids,as far as gills go,to my understanding there is a few varieties,would stocking only red ear or bluegill be preferred?.Also,in most creek or river habitat we have green sunfish,I believe I read they are 1/2 the equation for producing a hybrid.i believe a hybrid is the cross of male bluegill,and female green sunfish.
Seems highly possible that hybrids could make a natural entrance into a pond,it would be difficult to prevent.

Yes, a combination of bluegill and redear would be the best route. Generally you stock 80% bluegill/20% redear, such as 400 bluegill and 100 redear per acre. You're correct in that hybrid bluegill are a cross between a male bluegill and female green sunfish. You shouldn't have to worry about them entering your pond on their own unless the pond is fed by or flows into a creek or river. Green sunfish are known for getting into ponds on their own but it's almost always the case that it happens via a high-water event and also involves a nearby creek or river. And, even if you have a creek or river nearby, as long as you stock your pond as soon as it has enough water to support fish, generally when it's 1/2 full, the stocker fish, particularly the bass, will minimize the likelihood of a smaller wild species such as green sunfish establishing by preying on them when they enter the pond. Bass and bluegill grow rapidly in a new pond that is properly stocked, and as long as you don't have a flood that allows fish from a river etc. to enter right after the stocking, your stocker fish will be big enough within a few months to make it very unlikely that green sunfish could ever establish in the pond.

Zetts is a good hatchery in your state that has been around a long time and has good fish. They have selectively bred their bluegill for many years; I know of a pond owner in your state who got his bluegill from them and claims to have caught bluegill from his pond up to 13". They would be a good choice for stocking your pond. Stock bluegill, redear, fathead minnows, and largemouth; if you want big bluegill, stock the bass at the same time you do the bluegill and redear.

Let me know if you need a fish feeder or aeration.