re: Pond stocking?

quote:

---

you need any help, let me know. I've been known to catch a few. I'll bring beer

---

Will do

quote:

---

When calculating how big a pond is, do yo take into consideration the depth for stocking purposes? My pond averages 40' wide and is 240' long. It also averages approximately 9' in depth.

---

Stocking is based on surface area - not depth. 240 x 40 = 9600 sq ft. You have a pond that’s 0.22 acre in surface area (9600 divided 43560).

I hate to be a “Debbie Downer” but this a very small pond, and no professional freshwater fisheries biologist (side note: I am one) with knowledge of recreational pond management that I know would recommend you stocking a bass-bream combo in a pond that small - the odds of long term success is nil.

In a pond that small you could successfully stock channel catfish, possibly hybrid bream + bass. This is all discussed in the manual I linked in my earlier post, and the manual emphasizes bass-bluegill stocking scenarios in pond of 1 surface acre or larger. This is why encouraged you to read the manual before buying fish and stocking.

Honestly, this sounds to me like it is a borrow ditch pond from which dirt was excavated to raise the foundation on which a house was built, and not a pond specifically designed and built for recreational fishing - if I’m wrong accept my apology in advance.

Anyway, it is your pond and money and you are free to choose what whatever approach you wish, I simply want you to be aware of the implications.

I’d suggest you call or email Dr. Greg Lutz with the LSU AgCenter on Monday to discuss before you stock fish (no, I’m not Dr. Lutz). LINK. If you have trouble reaching Dr. Lutz contact Mark Shirley with the AgCenter. LINK

quote:

---

I hate to be a “Debbie Downer” but this a very small pond, and no professional freshwater fisheries biologist (side note: I am one) with knowledge of recreational pond management that I know would recommend you stocking a bass-bream combo in a pond that small - the odds of long term success is nil.

---

To confirm, yes, this is a pond that was dug in order to create the foundation for my home. While I understand that compared to others, this may be a small pond, I'd like it to not just sit there as a stagnant pool of water. I want it to be alive.

Also, my previous home had a pond that was less than half the size of this one and it was teaming with bream and had a fair amount of bass in it. We lived there for 15 years and always had plenty of fish. It was always exciting when the caterpillars were out, you could watch the bream feed on them when they fell from the trees into the water. Why would a pond less than half of my 1/4 acre pond now be able to support bass and bream?

I'm not looking to regularly fish the pond or even fish it at all, I just want to add some life to it (In this particular case, I do not consider turtles "life.")

quote:

---

To confirm, yes, this is a pond that was dug in order to create the foundation for my home. While I understand that compared to others, this may be a small pond, I'd like it to not just sit there as a stagnant pool of water. I want it to be alive.

---

Absolutely - it’s part of your landscape now, you want it to look as good and functional as possible.

quote:

---

Also, my previous home had a pond that was less than half the size of this one and it was teaming with bream and had a fair amount of bass in it. We lived there for 15 years and always had plenty of fish. It was always exciting when the caterpillars were out, you could watch the bream feed on them when they fell from the trees into the water. Why would a pond less than half of my 1/4 acre pond now be able to support bass and bream?

---

Good - you’ve had some first hand experience with ponds so you are not coming into this cold.

The general reason why small ponds just don’t reliability support the traditional bream-bass populations with the small numbers of bass in a small pond just the lost of few bass through predators, overfishing, whatever cause “upsets”the predator-prey balance numbers such that after some years you one winds up with large numbers of stunted bream, few bass because the bream disrupt spawning/reproduction of the bass. Although this can also happen in larger ponds loss of a few bass is not going to have the same impact in larger ponds, those over 1 acre in surface area.

quote:

---

I'm not looking to regularly fish the pond or even fish it at all, I just want to add some life to it (In this particular case, I do not consider turtles "life.")

---

This is perfectly fine, it’s your pond and you manage it and enjoy it as you wish - not a thing wrong with that. Probably should have asked you from the get go what your goals and objectives were.

It’s all good - I hope this puts your mind at ease with going the route you planned.