How long does it take for a new pond to produce decent fish?

[otter]

Hi folks,

I thought I would ask for some opinions here. A new neighborhood near my house includes two small lakes, which will not be stocked with fish by the developer. I've heard that fish will show up due to ditches, bird droppings, eggs on birds' feet, etc. How long does this usually take. I'm in the deep south, if that's of any help.

I'm thinking roughly a year to 18 mos. What do you think?

Thanks-

[Gardenfish]

if a pond is planted with fingerlings and conditions are ideal the fish can grow one inch per month. I cannot speak to the situation you described altho it sounds great.

[scubatim]

Most residential ponds in my area get stocked by the locals by catching fish from an established lake and releasing them in the new pond. I am not sure how legal this is but I have caught 5 and 6 pound bass in ponds less then a year old.

[Rick Z]

Part of it dependson the fertility of the pond. Also if there is any aquatic vegetation in the pond.
If you put some larger fish in the pond will have catchable fish sooner.

Be sure to lleave larger predators in or the pond will fill with stunted panfish.

Rick

[flybinder]

They did this, a few years ago, when I still lived in the "BIG CITY" of Portland. Out, in the "Burbs", they built these "Yuppie nesting places" covered with too expensive homes and almost, all, had a "neighborhood lake/pond".

Basically, they scooped out a lake with a loader and backhoe, let it rain and in rare cases, ran the fire hydrants in them, until they filled up. Well, with NO proper aquatic vegetation, more importantly NO way to exchange water aeration, within a year they had themselves a fantastic mosquito breeding farm operation going so bad, the city made them fill in many of them and others were forced to install "high volume aeration fountains", to remedy the problem.

They tried fish, in a few, but in limited numbers and in no time the raccoons, herons, seagulls, ducks,geese and neighborhood cats cleaned them out. The Yuppies also started dumping their goldfish in them, THAT became interesting in a few cases!!

They were all, about 1 to 3 acre lakes, too, not mere "farm ponds" or "overgrown fountain ponds".

Also, since there was no other bodies of water within miles, come migration time these new lakes and ponds, were so "covered in ducks and geese" not only could you not see the water's surface, for the bird bodies, you couldn't walk within 25 yards of shore, without "sliding in green doo-doo, straight into the water!! (Or, at the least, slide onto the tops of a 1,000 ducks and geese!) The stories, in the local paper also described; "The near, deafening noise of a thousand squawking ducks and geese, at all hours, day and night!"

I'd call my County Extension Office, locally, and ask them what they think these lakes may support and when. Or if they'll sustain vegetation, and/or, life of any kind, that you won't need "OFF" to protect yourself from!?!! They should come look at these new lakes free of charge and at least give you an idea.

I don't know, about your neck of the woods but in Oregon, the penalty for "transporting live game fish, from one body of water to another", is a $1,500 fine and the loss of your fishing license for 3 years. If you have any tackle in your car/truck, when caught too, they also confiscate that as well and you DO NOT get it back! Unless, of course, you go to the once or twice a year "State of Oregon Evidence Auction" and bid on your own tackle, to get it back!?!

[Buddy Sanders]

Otter,

If the 'pond' won't be actively stocked and 'managed' by it's owners, then the chance of it supporting catchable fish populations during your lifetime are slim to none. Waiting for an ecosystem to naturally 'establish itself' is the stuff of generations, not just a few seasons.

I'd avoid it unless you know that it will be properly aerated or have constant water exchange and it will be properly stocked and managed.

Otherwise, as Flybinder noted, it will become a cesspool.

Buddy

[William Fitzgerald]

I manage two ponds in a 10 year old addition---the developer agreed to provide the money and I stocked each with $2000 worth of 4 inch hybred gills and 4 in bass. In 8 years we have 8 to 10 inch gills and thousands of small ones to feed the bass. The bass run over 4 pds. It is yearly sprayed for weeds. The association stocked 20 ten inch grass carp in each without my knowing it. Its fun trying to clean them out with my 8 weight ,they now weight over 12 pds. You have to stock small bass otherwise they will eat any small stocked bluegills and one homeowner provided two truck loads of sand for gill beds--they lay eggs three times a year. BILL

[EdD]

Otter, if you are asking how long it will take for incidental stocking by eggs stuck to waterfowl, etc..., that could take years. Most likely the "bucket brigade" will dump a random assortment of fish that may, or may not, create a stable population of predators and prey.

Ed

[rrhyne56]

otter

Why not give the Fish & Game folks or the ag extenstion agent a shout? They ought to have all the relevant info for your area. Could be some nice surprises in store!!

[FishinsMyLife317]

If its not illegal, I would go for putting fish in yourself. My friend owns a few ponds that were overrun with wild shiners, causing problems for the bream population (competition for food, maybe). He caught two jackfish (chain pickerel) from a different pond and put them into the shiners pond. Within a year, there was no problem with the shiners population. Apparently the two pickerel he put in were male and female because he says he will occasionally catch a few of them while bass fishing now. I know its different in your situation but introducing fish can make a difference. If its not a huge pond, I would find out the proper ratio of predatory fish (bass) to forage fish (bream/ bluegill or whaterver you can catch locally) for a pond that size and do your best to introduce fish (that you have caught elsewhere) in that ratio to the pond. All of this is if it is legal, of course.