Why is my bass skinny?

Do you have a pond with too many one pound stunted bass? If your bass are too small, this may be a sign that there are not enough forage fish, too many bass in the pond, or a combination of both. Too often, pond owners prescribe the catch and release practice, which is more in line with large lake fishing and not conducive to growing healthy bass in small ponds. Harvesting is an important part of pond management that people need to be aware of. Harvesting can create a necessary balance between forage fish and predatory fish, giving your bass a lot to eat and with less competition. Bluegill is an excellent forage fish for your bass, and with proper management it can be the backbone of your food chain.

Bluegill can be identified by its round, flat body and the dark spot on the edge of the gill plate and at the base of the dorsal spines. The side of the head and chin are dark blue, the breast and abdomen are yellowish, and the breast of the breeding male will be bright orange. Several species of sunfish are commonly known as “perches”, but bluegills are most easily identified by the size of their mouths. Even when handling a large bluegill, it would be difficult to use the thumb to hold the lip.

Most pond owners will know what bluegills look like, but may not know what their spawning behaviors or habitat preferences are. The male bluegill will build spawning nests in shallow water, usually on a gravelly substrate, and will fiercely defend its territory from other males, invaders, and even nearby swimmers. Females will choose a desirable, usually larger male to mate with. The number of eggs produced is closely related to the size of the female. A small female can produce 1,000 eggs, while a large healthy female can produce up to 100,000 eggs, although females can typically lay 10,000 to 50,000. They can also spawn three times per season. If you want strong bluegill populations, you can see why large adults are so desirable. Bluegill spawning begins in May and continues through August, peaking during June when the waters are between 67 and 80 degrees.

It would seem that bluegill should have no problem maintaining strong populations when spawning multiple times per season with as many eggs as they lay, but what happens when your pond doesn’t have suitable nesting habitat? Unfortunately, most reproduction is lost due to poor spawning habitat. Most earthen ponds have 2 to 12 inches of sediment that suffocates the eggs shortly after they are laid. A popular solution is to add gravel to provide a hard bottom for nest building. This can be expensive, and over time the gravel can silt up or erode away from the spawning area, requiring the pond owner to repeat the process. There is also the option to use spawn disks. Spawning discs provide a stable, solid surface for bluegill, red ear, bass and crappie to lay their eggs. Also, other forage fish, including loggerheads and threadfin shads, will use the underside of the disc to attach their eggs. When the fry hatch, they will have a ready supply of algae growing around the edges and under the disc.

If you want to cure your stunted bass, make sure you have the right amount of forage fish, especially bluegill. With the right knowledge, you can have a large number of spawners and stable reproduction with a suitable habitat.