Ok, help guys.

[BD]

I am going to build a pond, and I am getting more and more confused about what is what lol.

Can someone send me a link or post a simple reply, on what is what bass strain.

F-1 is what?

Northern is what?

etc

I am getting confused.

I know I want redears/bluegills, fatheads/ and then a bass that is not hook shy after a while..which I think is the f-1??

[Raul]

F1 is the term that applies to the offspring result of the breeding of two closely related species or subspecies or two breeds and that 's it, an F1 hybrid has exactly 50% of the genetic make-up of each of his ancesters.

Bass do not have "strains", bass has species and subspecies, confusing ain 't it ? all this time you have heard about strains and here I come saying that such thing doesn 't exist which is true.

Largemouth has two subspecies:

Micropterus salmoides salmoides known as Northern "strain".

Micropterus salmoides floridanus known as Florida "strain".

Hybrids are not Frankenstein 's monsters like many people think they are nor they are factory or genetically enhanced creatures, hybrids occur naturally when two closely related species live in the same place, it 's not a rare occurence in nature, mules are a good example of a interspecies hybrid ( donkey/horse ).

Hybridazation is the process we humans use to produce an animal with certain characteristics we want in it, all our domestic animals are a good example of that process.

Hybridazation has it 's pluses and minuses, it brings the desirable characteristics with it ( a plus ) but also the undesirable characteristics with it ( a minus ), also, it can take it 's toll in the form of sterile hybrids ( the case of mules ), in terms of what you want, if you 're planning to build a pond stock it only with F1 hybrids and never add pure "strains" to it, why ? because as time goes by and bloodlines begin to mix you will loose hybrid percentage which was what you were looking for in the first place.

[BD]

Thanks Raul.

I thought I wanted f-1's but then some other site said....you know how this goes lol

[Raul]

I know it can be tricky choosing the "right" one and and before going ahead, one very important thing is the climathological zone, pure floridas and their hybrids don 't do well in cold climates, hybrids are more adaptable because they have northern genes in them but having also florida genes limits their abilitiy to stand colder climates, if your pond is located above the Mason Dixon line floridas and F1s are not going to make it through the winter, and it 's not me who says it, in that perspective the best advice in those terms can only be given to you by the person who is going to stock the pond.

Some say that the genetic make up of the fish "bleeds out", that is true to a certain point, on the other hand is a lot of you know what; it 's true when you place a population of F1s in an environment where pures already exist, the "blood" begins to mix and in the subsequent generation the hybrid percentage drops, 5 generations later you end up with pures; it 's  a lot of you know what because in a closed population where all the individuals have the same genetic make-up the percentage is maintained, they will always be F1s because their bloodlines have never been mixed with pures.

Now, F1s grow larger than pure northerns and smaller than pure floridas but, floridas are tougher to catch while northerns are "easier" to catch, it 's a win-loose situation, you loose size compared to pure floridas but you win "catchingness", so it largely depends on what you want, also it depends on how much it 's going to cost you, if they cost the same as pures and your zone allows you to have them then it 's not a bad idea to stock hybrids. Also, another important thing, you 're going to manage your pond for what, trophies ? or fun ?, trophy ponds and fun ponds have a completely different approach, trying to achieve both is almost impossible because trophy ponds demand a lot of good management and very careful and strict stocking and harvesting policies while fun ponds don 't.