Im Having A Big Problem

[ddiscon1015]

So Im David Im 16 years old die hard bass fisherman in south Louisiana My grandmother has a 7 acre stocked lake with 1000 Florida bass and we used to catch the hell out of them and the fish got real big lke some 8 adn 9 pounders were being pulled out and up until now we used to go and catch at least 10 fish all on lizards brish hogs never hit a jig or crankbait and i now never see baitfish ever idk if there is a lack of bass in the lake or what. Another thing do bass coincide with carp because before the carp came we used to catch a ton of them. The lake is 30' deep and generally doesnt have alot of structure and i was wondering if anyone has had this problm or something anythng would help catch and release only.

[livetofish28]

Selective harvest mabey I mean we don't have a lot of information if they're not hitting lures the chances are they are not starving but the lack of baitfish has me curious. And carp and bass do coincide more information would help

Tight lines

Andrew

[kickerfish1]

Yea at this point it could be many factors leading to the cause of the bass population dwindling. It could be very simple, complex, or several factors.

First, as noted we don't know about harvest rates of bass among those that have access to the pond. If a few fish are taken from time to time I don't see that as drastically negative thing. Releasing larger females who will be spawners is a good thing to do.

Second the carp are not typically anything more than eaters of aquatic vegetation and insects. Species like grass carp can devistate a lakes aquatic plant growth, limiting the amount of cover bass have to use especially for spawning. It may make their fry more susceptible to predatory fish like bluegill / bream.

The last thing that crossed my mind would be if there was a fish kill of any kind or perhaps something that got into the water chemical or otherwise to compromise the water clarity. The other thing to consider is there a small body If water like a creek that feeds the pond leading to the invasion of other species that may prey on younger bass.

I have seen ponds that have stunted bass populations. Essentially there are very high numbers of bass present and and not enough food sources. In these cases you may find lots of 10-15 inch bass but few larger.

To find out what exists in the pond you could try contacting your local DNR to find out if they could electroshock or by other means find out what the pond has in it and it what numbers. They may have to a rehabilitation project to it and sort of 're-do' the pond over.

It is really hard to say what the root of the problem is with out knowing a lot more info...

[gulfcaptain]

We have a city lake similar to your situation.  If it wasn't clear you would swear there aren't very many fish.  Problem being the fish in there are all mainly bigger fish.  Bigger fish become wary, more selective feeders, and if there isn't much cover, well they may have migrated to deeper structure except when they feed.  Do you catch any bluegill in the pond?  Have you tried fishing with live crayfish just to see what happens?  Only way you are going to find out what is going on is probably to get someone out to shock the pond and see, but may only give limited info due to the pond being up to 30ft deep and if they are relating to deeper structure you're probably not gonna be able to shock those fish up anyways.  The larger the fish become the less density and less amount of bass the pond can hold.  If it doesn't have a good food base the amount of fish you are going to catch is probably going to fall off due to the fewer fish in the pond. If there is a shortage of baitfish, then you would have to get an estimate of what the bass population and size is.  It may be as simple as adding forage fish to the system to help with the food chain or it may take culing some of the current population of fish with stocking of forage.  But sounds like that pond needs some management as well as a good assessment of the current health of the pond.

[ddiscon1015]

I have seen the big bass ambush the bluegill before and there has only been 3 fish taken out the pond but right around 2 years later we started catching the fish and putting them in a smaller pond maybe that has something tondo with it and they are both lank locked laked

[ClackerBuzz]

this is literally an entire industry. 

you really need a professional to come in to analyze endless variables. they will shock the fish to find out what slots to start harvesting, recommend adding/removing species etc etc

[Sam]

There could be a number of issues your family may want to address.

 

First, as stated by ClackerBuzz, if you can have a pond management company visit the pond and run some tests you can find out if there are any serious problems affecting the bass population.

 

Second, if the low production rate continues into the summer after the spawn the pond may be in big trouble.

 

Third, check with your parish about what they can do for you at no cost. If the parish people can't help you go to the state and ask for assistance finding the problem.

 

Fourth, when you catch bass and they are on the small side it can be a sign of too many bass in the pond. As stated by livetofish28, consider removing the smaller bass from the pond.

 

Fifth, dig up some worms and use them as bait and see what you catch. All fish will hit worms and you can get an idea of the bluegill, sac-a-lait, bass and catfish populations in the pond.  Remember, sac-a-lait are not good in ponds with bass as they are more aggressive when feeding than a bass and can cause havoc in a pond if there are too many. And the sac-a-lait taste good so have a big fish fry with them and serve Barq's, its good!

 

Sixth, and the most important, wear only purple and gold when you fish the pond and yell "Geaux Tigers" every time you set the hook. Otherwise you will not catch much. If you are a Toolame fan you will not catch anything.

 

Let us know what you find out from pond managers and your parish.

 

Tight Lines!

[Tim Kelly]

If the bass were all stocked at once and became big, they may just have died out of old age. If you haven't been catching smaller fish it's possible that the pond isn't suitable for spawning success for some reason?

[ddiscon1015]

The only thing stocked in the p

[ddiscon1015]

The only thing stocked in the pond were carp bass and some bluegill

[livetofish28]

Have you been catching little fish over the years?

[CDMeyer]

The pond may not be good for spawning, you said there is little structure maybe put some in there.  The worm idea is really good too to see what is in there.  Bait wise drag a Carolina Rig I the middle

[bigbill]

Throw different lures than your normal lures. I find that what's hot this year won't be hot next year. The bass we catch over and over learn our lures. I had the same thing in my smaller places.

As soon as I tried different lures the bite was on again.

[hatrix]

Well a body of water can only hold so much biomass. If it was near or at max levels and ten you add say 500lbs of carp that's 500lbs less of other species it can hold. You would be best to direct you inquires at thepondboss. I believe it is somewhat of a sister site to this one and those guys can help you out.

On a side note if no one fished there and you caught a tons of fish at first eventually it becomes harder and harder. I would venture to say a small high pressured pond can be harder then a large high pressure lake to catch fish.

If only for the fact that if it is heavily fished you can literally say every fish in the pond has seen your lure. People say that fish in lake get conditioned to lures but in a 1000 acre I would say some do but... I find it very hard to believe that every fish has seen these lures.

[everythingthatswims]

There could be a number of issues your family may want to address.

 

First, as stated by ClackerBuzz, if you can have a pond management company visit the pond and run some tests you can find out if there are any serious problems affecting the bass population.

 

Second, if the low production rate continues into the summer after the spawn the pond may be in big trouble.

 

Third, check with your parish about what they can do for you at no cost. If the parish people can't help you go to the state and ask for assistance finding the problem.

 

Fourth, when you catch bass and they are on the small side it can be a sign of too many bass in the pond. As stated by livetofish28, consider removing the smaller bass from the pond.

 

Fifth, dig up some worms and use them as bait and see what you catch. All fish will hit worms and you can get an idea of the bluegill, sac-a-lait, bass and catfish populations in the pond.  Remember, sac-a-lait are not good in ponds with bass as they are more aggressive when feeding than a bass and can cause havoc in a pond if there are too many. And the sac-a-lait taste good so have a big fish fry with them and serve Barq's, its good!

 

Sixth, and the most important, wear only purple and gold when you fish the pond and yell "Geaux Tigers" every time you set the hook. Otherwise you will not catch much. If you are a Toolame fan you will not catch anything.

 

Let us know what you find out from pond managers and your parish.

 

Tight Lines!

You catch crappies on worms? 

[Smallmouth Hunter]

I have seen ponds where bass and carp do not coincide too well.. I also read somewhere that carp will destroy the beds and destroy the eggs of bass during the spawn.

 

I would take out at least half of the carp then restock the pond with some more bass. Then I would release a species of shad into the water so the bass have plenty of food. Carp and shad reproduce extremely quickly. You will have to control the carp population while the bass control the shad population and at the same time grow quickly.

[Larry C.]

So Im David Im 16 years old die hard bass fisherman in south Louisiana My grandmother has a 7 acre stocked lake with 1000 Florida bass and we used to catch the hell out of them and the fish got real big lke some 8 adn 9 pounders were being pulled out and up until now we used to go and catch at least 10 fish all on lizards brish hogs never hit a jig or crankbait and i now never see baitfish ever idk if there is a lack of bass in the lake or what. Another thing do bass coincide with carp because before the carp came we used to catch a ton of them. The lake is 30' deep and generally doesnt have alot of structure and i was wondering if anyone has had this problm or something anythng would help catch and release only.

Hey buddy when can I book my vacation package over there???

[bartdude186]

i agree with changing what lures you are using, i fish a 20 acre lake close to my house and last year i tore them up all season on a fluke, by about september they wouldn't touch it. switched to a wacky rig and i'm back on them again. i'm hoping next year they will have forgotten about the fluke hahaha. for some reason bass in this lake won't touch any hard baits or jigs i throw at em, that is my reason for using the same thing a lot.

[Master Bait'r]

I have seen ponds where bass and carp do not coincide too well.. I also read somewhere that carp will destroy the beds and destroy the eggs of bass during the spawn.

 

I would take out at least half of the carp then restock the pond with some more bass. Then I would release a species of shad into the water so the bass have plenty of food. Carp and shad reproduce extremely quickly. You will have to control the carp population while the bass control the shad population and at the same time grow quickly.

 

 

A lot of this.  Also carp are huge and messy.  Basically huge glorified goldfish and they also create a ton of waste.  Knowing how fish populations can effect the chemistry of the water as well as the above mentioned clash, I'd bet the carp are probably at least a large part of the problem in one way or another.