This picture was taken at the end of the summer. Four months after the
previous picture. This fish is about eleven or twelve inches long. Admittedly,
this is one of the larger fish. They range from about six inches to about fourteen
inches long. All are healthy, but it's getting obvious that we could use more forage
to maximize their growth. They're getting big enough that they pretty much keep
the pond void of moving life. Minnows don't last long enough to spawn. And, we
haven't been able to grow enough minnows in the small pond to supply them.
After thinking about the situation for a while, we are probably going to add a shallow
section to the pond with the smallmouth bass in it. We plan on screening it off so that
the bass can't get in, but the minnows and forage could swim out. Hopefully it will
work as a breeding sanctuary. We will then move minnows from the small pond and
put them into the protected area. If we're lucky we'll get spawning in both the little
pond and the big one. If we still can't produce enough food, then we will probably
try the last resort: reduce the number of fish in the pond.