Understanding the levels of the bio-mass within your water is paramount to understanding the next steps to take to improve your fishery as it provides a better understanding of what is happening beneath the surface. This step allows for better advice on the stocking programmes and feeding ratios that you have in place for your fishery or stock pond.
One of the most common mistakes made by fishery managers is the failure to remove juvenile fish and unwanted species. By not removing these nuisance fish the target stock are unable to seek their full potential and over time this can lead to overstocked waters which causes water quality issues.
The removal of these fish is imperative for a properly managed fishery, especially when there are no predator fish present. Unless you know what is exactly in the water it is hard to effectively manage it. Once we have this information we can advise you whether fish need to be added or removed from the water for the improvement of the fishery.
We offer various levels of survey. The most extensive and therefore effective survey we offer involves draining the water down and carrying out an accurate stock take using a range of seine nets. However, we appreciate that this might not always be possible and therefore, when the lake is unable to be drained, we can use other methods such as electrofishing and/or netting. From this, we can still provide a relatively accurate profile of the stock within the lake.
We would strongly recommend carrying out a full survey at least once every few years in order to keep on top of the stock density to ensure that your desired stock continue to thrive and we would be very happy to assist you in configuring a management plan for your fishery going forwards.