Barbour County Public Fishing Lake (75 acres) was stocked with approximately 500 channel catfish per acre in combination with the normal stocking rates of largemouth bass, bluegill, and redear sunfish. The lake was supplementally fed on one side only, in addition to receiving a regular fertilization program. At the end of one year of fishing, 305.5 fishermen per acre had harvested 621.8 pounds of fish per acre. Of this total, bluegill comprised 381 pounds per acre. There was no stgnificant difference between the weights of bluegill collected from the fed and non-fed areas. There was a significant difference between the weights of bluegill collected shortly after the feeding program was inititated and bluegill collected 14 months later. Bluegill from Barbour County Public Fishing Lake were significantly heavier for a given length as compared to bluegill from three public lakes.
