Coppernose vs. Native Bluegill

[Csteel]

I am building a new pond and would like to have Bluegill as the main fish. My property is located in Texas so I have the option of choosing between the coppernose and native bluegill.

What advantages and disadvantages do each fish have?

[Bruce Condello]

I'm going to start this response by stating that I'd never held a coppernose bluegill in my hand until just about a year ago.

I think that some of the most beautiful bluegill I've ever seen are coppernose. The members of Pond Boss that pellet feed them also have some of the very tallest bluegill ever. They're really something. I think we should get George to comment on any differences that he's been able to tell between the two.

I think you can have both in your ponds, but may end up with a combination of genes, possibly the best combination for your particular pond? I think the F-1's are not sterile.

[Csteel]

I haven't decided yet if I am going to do male only or not. If I went male only, it would be interesting to have a mix of native and coppernose to see how each of them did.

[Bruce Condello]

A nice experiment for sure.

I've contacted George so he can comment on this question.

[Theo Gallus]

Chris, if I were in your shoes I would stock both. If that land stays in the family, you will have decades to manage the pond as you see fit. Even using selection methods no faster or more efficient than mine, if you decided to keep a consistant approach you should (I think) see an interesting surivial of the fittest genes from the CNBG and native stocks.

[george]

I'm a novice at raising BG but will be hapy to share my experience.
There are only two suppliers in Texas that I know of for "pure" Florida coppernose bluegill.
Bob Waldrop of Tyler Fish Farms and Todd Overton of Overton Fisheries.
Most dealers supply what I call "Arkansas strain" CNBG, which is a mix of CNBG from various sources - which in my opinion is a positive.

The "pure strain" Florida CNBG is known to grow larger but I have not found this to be recognizable.

Our pond has a mix that I call "TFA/CNBG" strain (TexArFlor) that I'm proud of.
I'll post photos that my wife caught this morning.
george

[Csteel]

There are a lot of things to consider at this point. Do I want it overall good fishing or as an experiment to see which strain does better in the same habitat? I would like to have it as an experiment but I will have to see what my dad has to say about it.

If I went with both strains and not male only I would have to deal with cross breeding and lose the "integrity" of each strain. I would also have to have predators which would reduce the number of bluegill that I could have.

So, my best idea at this point would be to have both strains(male only) with Fatheads, Gambusia, and supplemental feeding. I would also like to fertilize but I may pass on that until I have aeration.

[Dave Davidson]

CSteel, in Texas, I doubt that you will be able to tell the difference in size. However, the big poobah of ponds (Bob Lusk) says that coppernose get bigger.

I wouldn't sweat it either way.

[10.5" RES Sharon]

It's been 2 years, can we get an update on how your pond is doing? Did you get both kinds of bluegill, what happened?