The egg transfer method is used by the majority of golden shiner producers. Spawning mats are set in brood ponds for 24 h, then transferred to newly filling grow-out ponds. Mats with eggs are placed on the pond bottom in shallow water around pond edges.
Producers report widely variable hatching rates.
Documentation of the incubation environment for golden shiner eggs in commercial ponds could help identify reasons for the variable survival and lead to improved culture methods. In this study we measured the quality of water from within each of nine spawning mats as compared to levels in the commercial golden shiner production pond. Daily early am measurements were made until fry were seen. Work on other species has shown decreased hatch rates or smaller fry at similar DO levels. Data from recording thermographs also indicated that eggs may experience wide fluctuations in temperature during transfer and incubation.