Special Topics
Are you looking for a specific pond management topic? Browse through our selected topics resources below.
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 4
- Southern Region Aquaculture Center (SRAC) 370 – Pond Aeration
- SRAC 371 – Pond Aeration: Types and Uses of Pond Aeration Equipment
- Dissolved Oxygen for Fish Production
- The Role of Aeration in Pond Management
- Understanding Pond Stratification – The Ohio State Univ. Extension
- Pond Aeration – Western Canada Turfgrass Assoc. – Turf News
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 4
- Using Grass Carp for Aquatic Weed Management in North Carolina
- NC State Aquatic Weed Management
- Weed Management in Small Ponds (PDF)
- Hydrilla Information (PDF)
- Aquatic Weed Fact Sheets
- Salvinia Molestia In North Carolina (PDF)
- Aquatic Weed Control – North Carolina Agriculture Chemicals Manual (PDF)
- Southern Region Aquaculture Center (SRAC) 360 – Aquatic Weed Management: Control Methods (PDF)
- SRAC 361 – Aquatic Weed Management: Herbicides (PDF)
- Control Methods For Aquatic Plants in Ponds and Lakes – Virginia Cooperative Extension
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 4
- NC State Wildlife Damage Notes
- Prevention and Control of Wildlife Damage Series – Beavers
- NC State Extension Forestry – Working with Wildlife Series – Managing Beaver Ponds
- Managing Wildlife Damage: Beavers – Virginia Tech Extension
- Beaver Management in North Carolina. NC Wildlife Resources Commission
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 1
- Pond Construction and Permit Information
- American Fisheries Society Consumer Guidelines for Pond Owners
- Southern Region Aquaculture Center (SRAC)100-Site Selection of Levee-Type Fish Production Ponds
- SRAC 101 – Construction of Levee-Type Ponds for Fish Production
- SRAC 102 – Watershed Fish Production Ponds: Site Selection and Construction
- SRAC 103 – Calculating Area and Volume of Ponds and Tanks
- SRAC 104 – Repairing Fish Pond Levees
- SRAC 105 – Renovating Leaky Ponds
- Pond Design & Construction – Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission
- Pond Construction: Some Practical Considerations – Virginia Cooperative Extension
- Building Freshwater Fish Attractors — L 251 — University of Georgia Extension
- Aquaguides: Fathead Minnows In New Ponds and Lakes
- Why Use Minnows in Catfish Ponds? – Univ. of Georgia Aquaculture Newsletter
- Fathead Minnows – Texas Park and Wildlife
- Using Fathead Minnows to Provide Initial Forage – Univ. of Georgia Extension
- Southern Region Aquaculture Center (SRAC) 479A – Fee-Fishing: An Introduction
- SRAC 480 – Fee-Fishing Ponds: Management of Food Fish and Water Quality
- SRAC 481 – Development and Management of Fishing Leases
- SRAC 482 – Fee-Fishing: Location, Site Development and Other Considerations
- Fee Fishing in Florida – University of Florida
- Promoting Fee-Fishing Operations as Tourist Attractions
- Trout Fee-Fishing – NC State Extension
- Developing a Fee-Fishing Enterprise: An Opportunity in Recreational Tourism – Univ. of Maryland Cooperative Extension
- Fee Fishing – An Additional Source of Income – Univ of Arkansas
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 4
- Water Chemistry Testing Services in North Carolina
- Fish Kills – North Carolina Department of Environment & Natural Resources, Division of Water Quality
- Fish Kills: Their Causes and Prevention – Virginia Cooperative Extension
- Oxygen Depletion in Ponds – University of Georgia
There are over one hundred thirty different species of leeches. Some leeches are terrestrial, but most are aquatic and can be found in fresh water, usually in the shore or bottom mud of ponds, lakes, and rivers. Leeches are not usually a problem in ponds, as they are a natural part of the pond community.
Occasionally, however, leeches can become a nuisance if their abundance becomes too high. Excessive parasitism on fish species is one effect, although it is rare for leech infestations to become severe enough to result in fish kills or poor condition. More commonly, leeches are a pest to people swimming or wading in the pond.
Apparently only one product, Copper Sulfate Pentahydrate (EPA Registration Number 35896-19, Agtrol Chemical Products) is registered for leech control in farm ponds in some states, but not in North Carolina. However, you should always check your state laws to make sure it is legal to posses and dispense. A concentration of 5 parts per million (ppm) is recommended. For more information on leeches and their control.
Mosquitofish inhabit the shallow edges of ponds because of the abundance of food and to escape predation by larger fish such as bass and bluegill. Mosquitofish may be eliminated in ponds with steep edges that have insufficient cover for them to hide in.
Although mosquitofish are not among the species recommended for ponds, they do not have any apparent negative effects. If you wish to stock mosquitofish, contact a fish supplier. A list of fingerling suppliers can be found by following the link to the left.
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 4
- Prevention and Control of Wildlife Damage Series – Muskrats
- Muskrat Profile – University of Maryland
Black Crappie. Although both black and white crappies do well in large lakes, they usually do not do well in small ponds. Once crappies become established, they prey on small bass, compete for food with adult bass and bluegill, and tend to overpopulate. This produces a pond full of small, slow-growing crappies. Additional information is available through the links below.
Common carp and other suckers. Introduction of these fish species into fish ponds is a serious mistake. They compete directly for food with small bass and bluegill, destroy bass and bluegill habitat, and can only be removed by totally draining or chemically treating the pond. Because of their bottom feeding habits, common carp make the water extremely muddy. Common carp reproduce quite successfully in ponds.
Bullheads. Bullheads, often called “mudcats,”are not desirable in ponds because they often overpopulate and stir up the bottom sediment, making the water muddy. Overabundant bullhead populations produce few bullheads of desirable size. In addition, their presence often limits the success of channel catfish.
Other miscellaneous sunfish. Common North Carolina sunfish include bluegill, redear, longear, warmouth, pumpkinseed, green and redbreast sunfish. Only bluegill and redear sunfish are suited for North Carolina ponds. When stocked into fish ponds, the other sunfish usually produce an undesirable fish population. Green sunfish and warmouth are aggressive feeders and compete with bass and bluegill for food. If they get big enough, they even eat small bass. The pumpkinseed, longear and redbreast sunfish usually do not grow big enough to interest fishermen and they overpopulate easily.
Other Problem Species
- The Control of Burrowing Crayfish in Ponds – Virginia Cooperative Extension
- Non-fish problem species – Ohio Pond Management Bulletin
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 4
- Prevention and Control of Wildlife Damage Series – Nonpoisonous Snakes
- Prevention and Control of Wildlife Damage Series – Rattlesnakes
- North Carolina Amphibian and Reptile Biology & Conservation
- Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (PARC)
- Snake Profiles – University of Maryland
- Milwaukee Public Museum – Timber Rattler Facts
- Reptile Information Network
- Snake Bites Fact Sheet
- Reading List on Reptiles and Amphibians
- Reptile and Amphibian Characteristics
- Reptile and Amphibian Myths
- Snakes Alive! How to Identify Snakes
- Garter Snakes – Minnesota
- Snakes – University of Florida Extension
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 2
- American Fisheries Society Consumer Guidelines for Pond Owners
- North Carolina Department of Agriculture Fingerlings Supplier List
- Fish Fingerlings: Purchasing, Transporting and Stocking – University of Florida
- Stocking Sportfish in Virginia Ponds: Methods and Commercial Supply Sources – Virginia Cooperative Extension
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 4
- Prevention and Control of Wildlife Damage Series – Turtles
- Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (PARC)
- Turtle Profiles – University of Maryland
- Terrapin Institute
- New York Turtle and Tortoise Society
- Savannah River Ecology Fact Sheet – Milestones in Turtle Ecology
- NC State Pond Management Guide – Chapter 3
- Water Chemistry Testing Services in North Carolina
- Southern Region Aquaculture Center (SRAC) 460 – Control of Clay Turbidity in Ponds
- SRAC 462 – Nitrite in Fish Ponds
- SRAC 463 – Ammonia in Fish Ponds
- SRAC 464 – Interactions of pH, Carbon Dioxide, Alkalinity and Hardness in Fish Ponds
- SRAC 468 – Carbon Dioxide in Fish Ponds
- Ammonia – University of Florida