Gar in Catfish Pond

[skinsfan]

We have a 3 acre pond behind the house that is 12’ or so at its deepest point and stocked with perch minnows and catfish (3 years ago). Big June rains caused some flooding here last year and we had a few gar make their way in. The fishing has stunk this spring and I’m wondering if the gar have something to do with it. I can catch a gar or two every hour or so I fish, most being 12-24 inches long. I also have a ton of turtles we are working on eliminating. Any ideas/suggestions?

[Oleman]

Kill the gar, shoot the turtles. The gar will continue to feast on the game fish as long as they are in your pond. Turtles will feast on the killed gar, and that is when you kill the turtles.

[AntlerCollector]

You won’t have a catfish pond much longer unless you kill off the gar

[skinsfan]

That’s what I thought, I have shot a ton of turtles and killed quite a few gar, I’ll keep working at it. I have only caught one catfish in three days and the bluegill have disappeared.

[DUKFVR]

Turtles aren't the problem. Gars are.

[DTala]

I'd just poison it and start over, gar will be hard to totally eliminate.

[muzzlebrake]

Rotenone time. Then restock with desirable species.

FYI Rotenoned fish are safe to eat if you get them out quick and filet them.
So are fish killed by green walnut hulls.

[muzzlebrake]

Crushed green walnut hulls don't work that well on Garfish since they have the ability to use their air sack breathing method to survive oxygen depletion in the water. Green walnut juice affects the gills and suffocates all other species.

[SaltwaterSlick]

Well if the flooding brought IN the gar, maybe they TOOK OUT the other fish... During Harvey, my 2 ponds which are probably close to 1/2 mile apart, had so much water inundation, The fish could have literally swam from one pond to the other via the drainage system of the property... Could be your catfish and perch just swam away...

[Chew]

I got a hand crank telephone you can borrow for a "survey"
























































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Just kidding, Junior Game Wardens, just kidding.

[SaltwaterSlick]

Private waters Bobby would be perfectly legal if stocked fish... However those devices I've been told do not work in ponds... needs to be a flowing stream... or so I've been told...

[Chew]

Private waters Bobby would be perfectly legal if stocked fish... However those devices I've been told do not work in ponds... needs to be a flowing stream... or so I've been told...

I tried it...but couldn't get it to work. Kept getting a busy signal....





I watched a few cool videos of lake management guys with some high tech hoop looking thing in the water. They were surveying guadalupe bass in the hill country.

[SaltwaterSlick]

Yea a hoop will work... chains on the end of the +/- wire thrown at different angles... won't work... (so I've been tole)...

[Javelin]

The turtles do not hurt anything in your pond. You dont need to worry about them. Gar on the other hand will eat you out of house and home in a hurry. I would rotenone the pond and kill everything then start over with fathead minnows and bluegill (not greensunfish or other sunfish, but bluegill) Then after they have established for a few months (fathead minnows spawn several times a year) then go in with either catfish or bass. 3 acres is enough for either, but I would not do both. FYI catfish very seldom spawn in a pond environment so you will have to replenish every so often if you keep any or if they die of old age. If you go with bass you will need a very strict harvest plan after probably that second year so you dont get too many and they get stunted. However makes for great table fair all year long and with food prices may be a better idea than catfish that do not spawn.

[W E H]

years ago one of our big tanks (20+ acres) got overloaded with carp. standard theory was they came in on birds legs because there were no other tanks close like a mile plus. we rotenoned (sp) it and literally filled up tractor bucket after tractor bucket of carp along with oversized bait goldfish. quite a few bass several in 5# range.

most surprising fish was the 50+ pound yellow cat. i say 50+ pounds because we had 50+ scale and it didnt slow down going below the 50# weight line. my buddy said his grandfather had put several small yellow cats he'd caught in the guadalupe in the late 60's when they built the tank. this was in the late 80's when we poisoned it. tank was down about 1\4 of it's full size when we cleaned it out.

i do not remember many gar being netted though.