Zooplankton abundances and fish stocking densities vary substantially among hatcheries according to source water characteristics, pond management practices, and fish production goals. To what extent can we generalize our results to other aquaculture facilities that use different pond management strategies and fry stocking densities? The answer largely depends on whether the fish diet switch from live prey to feed parallels ontogenetic changes in digestive anatomy and physiology, or is forced by inadequate live prey populations in ponds. Although more manipulative experiments are needed to resolve the mechanism(s) underlying the diet switch, the best available evidence suggests that it is associated with a developmental change in the fish and is not forced by environmental changes in prey densities. Filbrun et al. (2013) reported that zooplankton densities were adequately abundant to support fish foraging throughout our pond experiment (fish stocking density ≈ 100,000 fish/ha), did not differ among feeding treatments, and did not decline in ponds with feed additions prior to the observed diet switch during week 4. Further, Mischke et al. (2013) reported no differences in early fish growth or zooplankton densities in ponds with and without feed additions that were stocked at an even higher fish density (250,000 fish/ha). Because live prey organisms were abundant and clearly supported early fish growth in both studies, we contend that zooplankton production in typical nursery ponds likely exceeds consumption by fish and therefore intraspecific competition for zooplankton is minimal or nonexistent. Thus, we expect to observe this diet pattern consistently across a broad range of pond management strategies and fish stocking densities used by private, agency, and commercial hatcheries