"Big" Bass, Small Ponds

[Paul Roberts]

The key is sustained big bass population verses boom & bust cycles.

Speaks to age structure really well. I like the Boom side of Boom & Bust cycles -for the sheer numbers. But this is a deathknell for "big" bass.

[fishizzle]

here is a pond I used to fish--it is about 3 feet deep throughout with a 6' deep channel and a laydown in the channel which I caught a 5lber in

the pond is under 10 acres

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=broad+brook+ct&rls=com.microsoft:*:IE-SearchBox&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7GPEA_en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&split=0&gl=us&ei=7VraSb7yC47rlQeioP3cDA&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1

modify-- that didn't work like I thought --zoom in and scroll up a pinch

Broad Brook Mill Pond

The creek bed has to be key. Is it a productive pond as well? Just one 5 lb. or several larger fish?

The pond is here, looks awesome:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Broad+Brook,+CT&daddr=41.91922,-72.544098&hl=en&geocode=Cf0HXGRrnUd8FVeRfwIdBwat-w%3B&gl=us&mra=mi&mrsp=1&sz=16&sll=41.917575,-72.542768&sspn=0.011799,0.019312&ie=UTF8&ll=41.919224,-72.543637&spn=0.00295,0.004828&t=h&z=18

You can clearly see the creek channel.

A two lb bass too:  thats it

there were no bass anywhere in the shallows because it was clear water and I saw nada

[HossFly]

Small ponds in south ms rule!!

I have two bass on my wall, both 7-lb'ers (one black, one spotted) and both came from ponds less than 7- acres.

I have seen countless numbers of double-digits come from 10-acre or less farm ponds.

I dunno, maybe it's the cow-dung or chicken-dung....... ;D

[mrlitetackle]

Small ponds can definitely hold large fish from my experience.  One of my favorite spots here in Orlando (i'll never tell you where it is..) is less than in acre in size and 10-13 deep max. My buddy and i have caught numerous 5 to 6 with the largest being 8.3 lb.    

[CatBassin]

From my experience most farm ponds aren't very deep at all, maybe 10-12 ft deep, and I have caught 4's and 5's easily over the years. In fact our state record, here in North Carolina, was caught in a farm pond and it weighed something like 14 I think.

[Paul Roberts]

We know big bass can come from small ponds, but..the question is:

Is there a depth limitation?

Any more of you guys know of bass larger than 5lbs or larger from ponds less than 12 feet deep? Just want to see some examples.

[drmnbig]

Although I haven't fished it in about 5 years there was a small farm pond a couple properties over from where I lived.  This pond is probably an acre in size and the deepest point is less than 8' deep.  It holds a bunch of 1lb+ bluegill and I've personally caught several 6lb+ bass out of it.  Suprisingly I didn't catch very many small bass or small bluegill out of it.  The pond had very dark water and seemed very acidic as it was surrounded by pine trees.  

[Hooked_On_Bass]

It seems to me that there is a corridor of larger than usual northern bass growth up the eastern coast. It just seems that MA, RI, CT, E NY. and NJ, give up 8 to 9lb bass where more inland waters don't. The largest pure northern LMB on record (15.5) came from MA.

I've assumed it has something to do with Gulf Stream effect that affects duration of growth. Anyway, I'm straying here...

Back on topic...Can shallow ponds produce big bass?

It's funny that you mention this Paul Roberts. I see some anglers in these regions mentioning 7-8 lbs largemouth; that is HUGE here in Ontario. And really, we are not that far from these states geographically. A 5 lbs largemouth here in Ontario is a trophy; a 7-8 lbs LM is almost unheard of. It's not to say fish of this size are not here (I know they are), it's just that they are extremely rare. When comparing the records for Largemouth in these areas with ours here in Ontario (10 lbs 4 oz), it's apparent that they are fairly close (with maybe the exception of MA). Although, our record LM was caught in 1976. I'm not sure when the records were set in the above states? I'd really like to find out more info on this...............

For the gents in these regions: How common/rare are LM in the 7-8 lbs class in your opinion?

Thank you in advance,

PS - Paul Roberts, I don't mean to hijack your thread. I'm just curious.

[J Francho]

HOB, here is the leader board for a NY based forum for 2008

1) 7lb 7oz by Huskybass (Mike)

Was caught 9/18/2008 with friend Wally

Tied 2-3) 7lb 6oz by DSouth (Dan)

Was caught 9/25/2008 with basser TBass (Joe)

Tied 2-3) 7lb 6oz by Gregg

Was caught 4/1/2008 with basser Pete L

Tied 4-5-6) 7lb 4oz by tcbass

Was caught 4/26/2008 with friend Mike

Tied 4-5-6) 7lb 4oz by Chip13 (Bryan)

Was caught 4/13/2008 with basser Jerkbait (John)

Tied 4-5-6) 7lb 4oz by Gregg

Was caught 4/1/2008 with basser Pete L

Tied 7-8) 7lb 3oz by Jighead61 (Ronnie)

Was caught 10/23/2008 with basser Chip13 (Bryan)

Tied 7-8) 7lb 3oz by Nicole

Was caught 816/2008 with basser Buttlesdog (Eric)

Tied 9-10) 7lb 1oz by Jighead61 (Ronnie)

Was caught 4/3/2008 with basser Tubeking (Dennis)

Tied 9-10) 7lb 1oz by Maximus10k (Max)

Was caught 10/18/2008 with basser Chin814 (Pete)

Its worth noting that #1 was caught in Mass. - from a pond, LOL.   The rest in NY.

[Hooked_On_Bass]

Excellent!  

And to think..........you're right across the pond from us. I've got to get to the bottom of this.

Thanks J Francho.

[J Francho]

HOB, see my post here: http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1238973903.  that fish is #5 on the 2009 leader board.  No sevens yet this year, though a 5-9 just got knocked off yesterday.

Here are a couple of big pond fish.  The first comes from a pond that I don't think is very deep - maybe 6', but I can't be sure.  The second copmes from a very deep pond, 13 or 14' deep, its basically shaped like "bundt cake pan" if you know what I mean.

[Hooked_On_Bass]

Thanks for the link J Francho! Those are some superb fish anywhere, especially up my way. Congrats!

Some sevens should start to show up soon if we go by the 2008 leader board you posted. Five of the top ten were caught in April.  

[Mottfia]

Central Alabama + 6.5foot(deepest) pond=  9lb bass

That fish was pumping some major roids cause he was 5 times bigger than anything else I've seen out of there. Someone explain that to me!

Mottfia

[CFFF 1.5]

A lot of the lakes in central florida that I fish aren't more than 10ft deep at any point and they all hold big bass.

[Paul Roberts]

Great stuff -Both threads LOL

OK first:

Thanks guys for numbers on those fish and ponds.

entral Alabama + 6.5foot(deepest) pond= 9lb bass

That fish was pumping some major roids cause he was 5 times bigger than anything else I've seen out of there. Someone explain that to me!

It would take too long to detail all the possibilities, but among these are:

-Genetics

-Age

-Aggressiveness

-Difficulty to dupe by anglers (bounces back to age)

-Reproductive anomaly -sterile individual allowing growth to go into body size and not shunted off into gonad production.

All this on top of a water body that can produce enough food in enough sizes, to support such growth from fry to MONSTER.

Take the above list and imagine a bass that either outlives and outgrows it's cohorts. It jumped a barrier that keeps other bass from getting any bigger. That 9lber very likely was supported food-wise by other mature bass it had outgrown. Or, there are big bluegills in that pond that are just too big for the other bass to eat, 'cept for that one. Barriers are real and every pond has them. The waters in which many bass can leap them are rare indeed. Otherwise it's a rare individual that manages it. And I'm not convinced every pond has such fish -despite how much we'd like to believe it.

Next:

HOB, here is the leader board for a NY based forum for 2008

1) 7lb 7oz by Huskybass (Mike)

Was caught 9/18/2008 with friend Wally

Tied 2-3) 7lb 6oz by DSouth (Dan)

Was caught 9/25/2008 with basser TBass (Joe)

Tied 2-3) 7lb 6oz by Gregg

Was caught 4/1/2008 with basser Pete L

Tied 4-5-6) 7lb 4oz by tcbass

Was caught 4/26/2008 with friend Mike

Tied 4-5-6) 7lb 4oz by Chip13 (Bryan)

Was caught 4/13/2008 with basser Jerkbait (John)

Tied 4-5-6) 7lb 4oz by Gregg

Was caught 4/1/2008 with basser Pete L

Tied 7-8) 7lb 3oz by Jighead61 (Ronnie)

Was caught 10/23/2008 with basser Chip13 (Bryan)

Tied 7-8) 7lb 3oz by Nicole

Was caught 816/2008 with basser Buttlesdog (Eric)

Tied 9-10) 7lb 1oz by Jighead61 (Ronnie)

Was caught 4/3/2008 with basser Tubeking (Dennis)

Tied 9-10) 7lb 1oz by Maximus10k (Max)

Was caught 10/18/2008 with basser Chin814 (Pete)

Its worth noting that #1 was caught in Mass. - from a pond, LOL. The rest in NY.

What's really interesting to me is: Where are the 8lbers??? I hear about them all the time. People reading BassMaster and not carrying a scale I suppose.

It's funny that you mention this Paul Roberts. I see some anglers in these regions mentioning 7-8 lbs largemouth; that is HUGE here in Ontario. And really, we are not that far from these states geographically. A 5 lbs largemouth here in Ontario is a trophy; a 7-8 lbs LM is almost unheard of. It's not to say fish of this size are not here (I know they are), it's just that they are extremely rare. When comparing the records for Largemouth in these areas with ours here in Ontario (10 lbs 4 oz), it's apparent that they are fairly close (with maybe the exception of MA). Although, our record LM was caught in 1976. I'm not sure when the records were set in the above states? I'd really like to find out more info on this...............

Here's why I mentioned the Gulf Stream:

The Gulf Stream (GS) is a "river" of warm tropical water that runs up the coast affecting the inland climate with it. The GS bounces off Long Island and turns east, toward the UK. Thus coastal waters off S NE can get summer influxes of tropical fish like false albacore, and the stripers grow big. But as you go into N NE the water gets cold, and the stripers in ME are known to be small.

I'm wondering if there is a growth differential due to climate from the GS. The other thought could be overall productivity due to the marine sediments (lotsa limestone) in some of those areas. Anyway, somthin' is different along coastal NE.

[J Francho]

What's really interesting to me is: Where are the 8lbers??? I hear about them all the time. People reading BassMaster and not carrying a scale I suppose.

An accurate scale has to rank as the worst investment I have ever made.  That ended a great run of catching monster bass, LOL.

But seriously, I don't know where the 8's are.  I know at least one was caught in Conesus (or something close to 8) during a tournament.  Perhaps the trophy hunters aren't reporting everything they've caught.  You'll know when I get my 8.  Seriously, its happening this year.  My PB NY fish is 7-2, from "I" of all places, and looking to bust that by at least 14 oz.

I'm trying to find the largest fish reported over there - its a 9-5, if memory serves me correctly.

[Paul Roberts]

I'm trying to find the largest fish reported over there - its a 9-5, if memory serves me correctly.

At "I"??

I'm certain you don't need to hear this, but, I'm so used to saying it: Don't believe everything you hear.

There was a rumor from a very reliable source (I won't mention bc he really is a reliable source and good guy) that DEC had shocked 8 and 10lb LMs from a certain lake. This was published. I finally contacted the DEC and they could not substantiate it. It appeared to by another myth.

An accurate scale has to rank as the worst investment I have ever made. That ended a great run of catching monster bass, LOL.

;DSo true. I fished with a really good young bass fisher last year who had one of those incredible stories (I won't bore you with). Anyway, we fished together and each caught a "big" bass that day. He was thrilled, and then he said, "Gosh that's gotta go 6 or 7". I put it on my calibrated Chatillon and it went .... 4#9oz. Mine went 4#14.

I think to this day he doesn't want to believe it, and when I asked if it was OK, my weighing his fish, he replied "Yeah...I guesso...If you say it was calibrated...I guess..." Sure seemed to take some wind outta his sails -and truth be told, it was a very nice Colorado bass!

It's apparent to me that a lot of anglers use what's called relative comparison, in which they compare their fish to others they've caught and those they've seen pictures of and read weights of in media. Add inexperience and excitement of the moment and numbers fly.

It is a peeve of mine because it gives a false sense of what's really around, and what a genuine accomplishment a given bass might actually represent.

[Paul Roberts]

Gosh! Speaking of Conesus I had a guy come into the shop once, and say, "Hey, wanna' show you something ." He climbed onto his boat, reached into his livewell, and a simply enormous bass head emerged from the well.

"Holy ....."

Then he laughed and pulled it all the way out. It had a HUGE head, biggest I think I've still ever seen, but comically short body, and weighed I don't remember, 5+ or something. Anyway, we both had a good laugh.

[pondhopper]

IMO i beleive it all has to do with the forage and the cover you have. thats my 2 cents worth

I'll second that.

[J Francho]

Paul, no not I, the 9-5 came from Westchester County. Sorry if I wasn't clear. My PB NY fish was from I, a 7-2.

[Raul]

What's really interesting to me is: Where are the 8lbers???

Good question ! where are they ?

My first 10+ pounder came from one of those irrigation ponds I was talking about, as a matter of fact, my 1st, 2nd and 3rd 10+ lbers came from the same pond the same day ( who wouldn 't love to have a day where you catch 3 10+ pounders ?   ), now the catch here is, I fished that pond for maybe 5-6 years on a reagular basis ( every 2 weeks ) and all I caught were 8-12 inchers all the time, the largest fish I caught out of those ponds in all those years was a 4 pounder.

One day it happened, I caught big momma bass from that pond and the spawn had a lot to do with it, I was at the right place at the right time. So where them big mommas hid ? well the pond in question has a lot of tule, it 's a gigantic bed that cover 1/3 of the surface of the pond, a practically impenetrable mass of weeds where most likely big mommas spend most of their time hiding.

[WRB]

Growing up fishing small clear lakes and rock quarry ponds helps to learn bass habits because you can see them.

The first lesson learned is the bass in these smaller ecosystems are always aware of everything above, around and in the water. Bass that don't learn what can harm them don't survive to grow larger. Big bass in these ponds or small lake become extremely wary. The one seasonal period where they are less wary is during the spawn. The drive to survive is over come by their instinct to spawn.

The best times to fish ponds is during low light periods, light rain or at night, if big bass are your targets. You approach the water as if the bass can see you, because they can, and stock them like a trophy buck because they are just as wary. Use lures that look and act like the prey they are looking for; large baitfish, frogs and crawdads.

WRB

[grumman]

I use to fish a small 3 acre pond no deeper than 10 to 12 ft. Was not uncommon to catch 4 to 5 bass over 4lbs each almost every time you went. Would always throw them back. This pond had good structure. Sure do wish i could still fish it! That has been 10 years ago, there has to be some monsters by now. I live in West Tennessee and directly behind my parents house was watershed lake or pond about 10 acres in size. Me and my buddy would go out there the first of April crappie fishing, using minnows and bobber. One day we got into some big bass while crappie fishing. We were about 20ft off the bank fishing next to a log and pulled 3 bass in each over 7lbs! My buddy was using a croppie poll and how he got it in the boat i'm not sure. Every one was full of eggs. That was a fun day.

[Paul Roberts]

Westchester County

That's lower NE, isn't it?

[J Francho]

Westchester is just north of NYC.  Many of the cities drinking water reservoir systems are there.  Silly good fishing in them!