Pond stocking question

[BassSTL]

Hey all, I inherited a farm with a very small (roughly 1/2 acre) pond. Pond has nice depth to it so it can hold some fish. Pond is infested with green sunfish, which is great for the kids to catch. We have harvested a lot of the sunfish but you can still catch them nearly every cast with live worm cuts. We stocked bass fingerling, which may stand no chance against the bigger sunfish. I’ve also relocated around 10 mature sized bass into the pond, which I’m hoping will do well considering there seems to be limitless sunfish and frogs to feed on. 
 

I’m not necessarily worried about growing large bass, I just want them to live and reproduce for the kids to catch. I know I need to try to introduce bluegill and plan to do so once we notice the sunfish population decreasing. 
 

And one more thing, there are at least two big snapping turtles, I presume a male and female, and I’m fairly certain they have some offspring in there. Do these snappers need to go in order for the bass the survive and reproduce? It seems to me that the snapping turtles are the apex predators and may inhibit bass spawning.  
 

Any other advice would be helpful. Thanks!

[ironbjorn]

I don't know anything worth sharing on pond stocking, but definitely get those turtles out of there. They can quickly wipe out a small pond.

[MN Fisher]

First item

 

Check with your state DNR/DFW/whatever...some states restrict stocking private ponds and you have to go through them to do it.

[Hammer 4]

5 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

First item

 

Check with your state DNR/DFW/whatever...some states restrict stocking private ponds and you have to go through them to do it.

^^^^ This. Also ask them if they are able to relocate the snapping turtles, vs..  something else.

[N Florida Mike]

Go to the “Pond boss “ forum. It will be an excellent source of info for you.

Stay on here of course, for the fishing tips, reports, etc. Post some of your catches!

[cyclops2]

 

 

If the pond is that small ?  Take PERSONAL CARE of it. I would move the turtles. Any safe way so you are not risking a bitten off finger or wrist .The turtle is expendable. People are not. 

[huZZah]

Turtles eat fish. Not the other way around no matter the turtle size.  Another issue with turtles is they leave the pond and return, bringing other things with them.  They are considered borderline invasive where I live.  I’d get rid of them before you even consider stocking more, and you have to wait to be sure they didn’t lay eggs.  They will strip your pond then move on…then come back if allowed to. 

[N Florida Mike]

Turtles are just a nuisance where  I live. I  just dont see how a big slow moving turtle can catch enough fish to matter much. Otters- now that’s a different story…

[Tennessee Boy]

When I was a kid I put out trot lines with my grandfather.  We seined our ponds and the pond of neighbors for sunfish to use for bait.   We caught countless snapping turtles in ponds that were full of fish.   I would not worry about the turtles. If you remove the turtles more will find their way into the pond.   The biggest problem you will face with bass is overpopulation.  Maybe the turtles can help some with that.

[Blue Raider Bob]

I have a 2/3 Acre pond and I have transient turtle populations including the occational snapping turtle. Just my opinion but I would leave the turtles alone. They have a niche in your overall pond ecosystem. With the greensunfish issue you have they can only be benificial. But like NFlorida Mike says, the otters are where your problems may arrive if you have a local population. They will wipe out all large fish in a pond your size in a small amount of time. I have this issue every winter. I find bass skulls on the pond bank and bluegill scales all over me dock. Don't know how they catch them but they do.

[DaubsNU1]

Yes, check with your DNR / Game and Fish.

 

In Nebraska: "It is illegal to transport live fish and baitfish from one body of water to another without authorized consent from the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission."

 

Easy to spread disease, or invasive aquatic plants or animals between lakes / ponds.

 

Zebra mussels are a HUGE deal in Nebr.

 

Good luck!

[PressuredFishing]

On 9/5/2021 at 8:36 PM, BassSTL said:

Hey all, I inherited a farm with a very small (roughly 1/2 acre) pond. Pond has nice depth to it so it can hold some fish. Pond is infested with green sunfish, which is great for the kids to catch. We have harvested a lot of the sunfish but you can still catch them nearly every cast with live worm cuts. We stocked bass fingerling, which may stand no chance against the bigger sunfish. I’ve also relocated around 10 mature sized bass into the pond, which I’m hoping will do well considering there seems to be limitless sunfish and frogs to feed on. 
 

I’m not necessarily worried about growing large bass, I just want them to live and reproduce for the kids to catch. I know I need to try to introduce bluegill and plan to do so once we notice the sunfish population decreasing. 
 

And one more thing, there are at least two big snapping turtles, I presume a male and female, and I’m fairly certain they have some offspring in there. Do these snappers need to go in order for the bass the survive and reproduce? It seems to me that the snapping turtles are the apex predators and may inhibit bass spawning.  
 

Any other advice would be helpful. Thanks!

Green sunfish are a great forage,  I think bringing in bigger bass in the quarter pond range + may be a good way to avoid the panfish from cleaning them out.

[Krux5506]

Any idea on depth of the pond? Is there any structure there? If it were mine I'd probably throw some pallets in or just try to make rock piles and stuff too add structure for the fish. I think I'd spend way too much time and energy on a pond....but some day I'd really like a property with one on it. 

[Blue Raider Bob]

On 9/8/2021 at 1:31 PM, Krux5506 said:

Any idea on depth of the pond? Is there any structure there? If it were mine I'd probably throw some pallets in or just try to make rock piles and stuff too add structure for the fish. I think I'd spend way too much time and energy on a pond....but some day I'd really like a property with one on it. 

Put a pond on your bucket list. Yes you will spent way too much time and energy but it will pay you back tenfold. I spend parts of every day on my pond if its only to watch. I started digging mine 25 years ago but it would not hold water. Four years ago i laid a pond liner down, dug a well with a solar powered pump, and built a floating dock. The incredible amount of life that the pond attracts is amazing. Not only do I have fish but water birds, frogs, turtles, and unfortunatly otters in the winter. My floating dock is my therapy just like river fishing only I use it daily.

Good Luck!

[moguy1973]

Half acre isn't all that big of a pond but it should support some decent bass. Especially with the forage you say is in it.  Just give it some time.  My inlaws bought a property with a pond in 2015 (although it's bigger at about 4 acres) and it didn't have many bass in it at the time.  It also had a bad weed problem that almost completely choked it out in the summer time.  They put some grass carp in it and stocked it with a couple dozen 6" bass.  It also has a huge green sunfish population, and a really good bluegill population.  It has a ton of frogs too, and with that a lot of tadpoles in the spring.  Lots of forage like that and a couple years gone past has produced a thriving population of bass that average about 2 1/2lbs and have gotten as large as 5 1/2lbs. 

 

I'd give your 10 relocated bass a couple of years to stabilize and make some baby bass and you should have a fun little pond.  As others have said, sink some trees or make some 5 gallon bucket PVC bushes to throw in for fish attractors.

[the reel ess]

If the turtles ate that much fish the pond wouldn't be overrun with green sunfish. In fact, some predation or removal of bass is a good thing for size once the population is established. I fish a pond that's less than an acre and I've caught fish in the 5-6 lb range. Until recently, I didn't realize there were god shiners in it. I caught a bass that spit one up. Forage is key for size. But if you just want fish for the kiddies to catch, sunfish and minnows should suffice. There are probably crawfish in there as well. Sounds like a great place to fish. 

[cyclops2]

Otters are good for clothing. They eat ANTHING.

[slonezp]