Pond Feeds for Bait and Ornamental Fish
Meal type feeds are often used in ponds for feeding bait fishes, such as golden shiners and fathead minnows, and for feeding ornamental fishes. Sometimes the meal type feeds are fed unitl the fish are harvested, which is usually at a maximum size of 10 cm to 12 cm. Greatest feed efficiency is obtained, however, when the fish are changed to small-particle (2-4 mm), crumbled or extruded feeds. The extruded feed particles are carefully processed to insure sufficient expansion to allow them to float but to keep particle size small.
Most bait and ornamental fishes can obtain a large part of their nourishment from plankton and benthic organisms in the ponds; consequently, good pond preparation is important. When fish consume a large amount of natural food in a pond, the micronutrient composition of the supplemental diet is not critical.