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F1 Bass? Anyone with knowledge of said fish?

Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:13 am
Posted by LBro337
Lousiana
Member since Jan 2019
340 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:13 am
I'm looking to get roughly 100 F1 (Bass) 2" fingerlings for my 1 acre pond from American Sport Fish outta Alabama. They will be ready around May 2020. These are a cross breed between a Northern Bass and Florida Bass. Anyone have any prior experience with these type of bass? I believe its a fairly new concept dating back 5-10 years and is still being worked on to improve the results.
Posted by Wolfmanjack
Member since Jun 2017
1139 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:19 am to
F1 usually refers to the first generation of two controlled parental groups.
Posted by TheDrunkenTigah
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2011
17851 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:20 am to
Have a lot of experience with them in ponds. What do you want to know? There are pros and cons with them, but the results are generally positive. Yes they are the first generation cross of northern and florida largemouth, and they've been around for awhile.
Posted by LBro337
Lousiana
Member since Jan 2019
340 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:21 am to
Yes sir I do believe that is correct. American Sport fish refers to the fry as Tiger Bass.
Posted by LBro337
Lousiana
Member since Jan 2019
340 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:23 am to
Considering all the factors of growing healthy fish are there; are the numbers they say accurate? I'm reading that within 12-16 months, majority will be 2-3 lbs, some maybe even higher. That's incredible
Posted by TheDrunkenTigah
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2011
17851 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:26 am to
That's under ideal conditions in the fine print I'm sure. That has not been my experience, and has led to some of the cons I mentioned.

They have the potential, through hybrid vigor, to show the growth of florida bass while maintaining the aggression of the northerns. This will not be true of every single fish, but it will be true across the stocking class as a whole.

I've been fooling with them for close to 15 years and there are some quirks to them, and they are a little more maintenance than native bass.
This post was edited on 8/7/19 at 10:28 am
Posted by LBro337
Lousiana
Member since Jan 2019
340 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:36 am to
What are the CONS?
I've also read that due to them being so closely related (Brother/Sister) it would be a good idea to introduce outside genetics after about 5-6 years.

My pond is ready for bass. I feel i have a good amount of structure and bait fish for 100 bass. I was originally going to put Northerns but I read about the F1s/Tigers and it got my mind wondering.
Posted by 007mag
Death Valley, Sec. 408
Member since Dec 2011
3902 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:40 am to
quote:

TheDrunkenTigah

^speaks the troof

It's been my experience with the ones I stocked to get about 12" in the first year and that was with high protein feed. The yearling bass would eat the feed their first year but generally lost interest in the pellets and would chase the bluegill or just lurk around the perimeter once they got larger. We were catching 5+lbers the third year. One of the cons I noticed is they tend to swim away when a 1000year flood inundates your pond.
Posted by TheDrunkenTigah
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2011
17851 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 10:53 am to
quote:

What are the CONS?
I've also read that due to them being so closely related (Brother/Sister) it would be a good idea to introduce outside genetics after about 5-6 years.


Kinda sorta. The thing you have to understand going into it is that the fish you stock are the ones you want growing. The F2 and F3 generations will not show the same hybrid vigor of the F1s and can actually go the other direction. The usual plan is to stock relatively low, let them grow for two years, and then aggressively remove every single fish below the size of the F1s that was likely spawned in the pond. They will never show the same potential as the F1s, and represent competition for food. It will never be a set it and forget it thing with F1s, if you really want trophies. When they start to die off you will have a tough decision, either start over or deal with it, knowing it will never again be quite like it was 5-6 years after you stocked the F1s.

To get anywhere near the growth they are advertising, you are really going to more of a bluegill grower than bass grower. You have to maintain a steady supply of small bluegill, period. This means providing good spawning habitat for the bluegill but also removing as many large ones as humanly possible, and it can be work. You really aren't trying to grow trophy bluegill, so most you remove will be just big enough to be a pain in the arse to clean.

Another con is you really have to be confident in the fish you're removing. F1s are so aggressive in that 12-14" range that it's entirely possible to remove most of the fish you just stocked. If you go strictly by the book, you likely WILL do exactly that, as that's about the size ours were after two years. If I had it to do over again I would find a way to catch and tag at least a good bit of the first generation so I knew at least a range of sizes to put back. If you don't, and go by the book which will tell you to remove ANY bass under a certain length, all you're doing is removing the more aggressive F1s and actually selecting for the ones that inherited the florida strains tendency to be a little more lock jawed as they grow.

Posted by LBro337
Lousiana
Member since Jan 2019
340 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 11:08 am to
I feel ya pain about the flood brother. I have a 3' levee around mine and sure enough water came over so no telling what i lost (Bream wise) or what came in..... Hated it...
Posted by LBro337
Lousiana
Member since Jan 2019
340 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 11:12 am to
Thanks for the info
Posted by TheDrunkenTigah
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2011
17851 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 11:36 am to
Not trying to talk you out of it, if you do it right you can have an awesome place in 4-5 years full of big aggressive bass, but they come with a little bit more work.
Posted by southside
SW of Monroe
Member since Aug 2018
642 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 11:44 am to
Great convo, very informative! Thanks
Posted by LBro337
Lousiana
Member since Jan 2019
340 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 12:20 pm to
I believe this is the route I'm going to do down! Appreciate everyone's info.
Posted by TheDrunkenTigah
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2011
17851 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 12:42 pm to
Not specific to the F1s but how big is the pond and do you have bluegill established? Are there currently any bass in it? There's a few things that can help jump start the process and some that can really shoot you in the foot.
Posted by omegaman66
greenwell springs
Member since Oct 2007
24773 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 2:28 pm to
f1 not new. i would prefer a pond with zero northern genetics.
Posted by southside
SW of Monroe
Member since Aug 2018
642 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 2:41 pm to
TheDrunkenTigah do you offer professional consulting on stocked pond management? Is there a way to contact you?
Posted by LBro337
Lousiana
Member since Jan 2019
340 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 3:33 pm to
Pond is 1.15 acres, It was stocked w/ 800 hybrid bluegill and 800 Coppernose w/ 10 pounds of minnows roughly a 1-1.5 years ago and roughly 30 sacks of peeler crawfish a few months ago. I can catch all sizes of bream and walking along the banks there are tons of bait fish. Multiple areas of structure, both artificial and natural.
Posted by TheDrunkenTigah
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2011
17851 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 3:52 pm to
quote:

TheDrunkenTigah do you offer professional consulting on stocked pond management? Is there a way to contact you?




I am far from a professional, I've just learned this stuff from being the unofficial "manager" of two family ponds over the years. We've stocked F1s twice in one pond, the other has never been stocked since we've owned it, so I've gotten to see both sides of this coin.

My email is my username@gmail if you want to contact me, but all I can really speak on is what I've seen first hand on our property, and I still learn something new every year.
Posted by TheDrunkenTigah
Baton Rouge
Member since Aug 2011
17851 posts
Posted on 8/7/19 at 3:56 pm to
quote:

Pond is 1.15 acres, It was stocked w/ 800 hybrid bluegill and 800 Coppernose w/ 10 pounds of minnows roughly a 1-1.5 years ago and roughly 30 sacks of peeler crawfish a few months ago. I can catch all sizes of bream and walking along the banks there are tons of bait fish. Multiple areas of structure, both artificial and natural.




Man sounds like you are ready to go, only other thing I'll add is lime now if it needs it. Really will work wonders for putting weight on the fish and minimizing stress after stocking.
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