catfish [plecos] are they suited to ponds?

[whiskey]

can anyone tell me are catfish suitable for outdoor ponds, some say there best kept indoors, some say there good at cleaning ponds, other say they dont eat algae only meat,shrimps etc. Are they suited to a mainly a goldfish envioment or best kept in a tank [ aquarium ] indoors.

 

[HARO]

Whiskey: as long as you realize that most catfish in the aquarium trade are tropical and must be brought in for the winter, you should be all right. I assume you are thinking of the plecostomus types; most are great algae consumers, but can get very large! Stay away from redtail and shovelnose cats; some of these can reach 4' or so, and eat mainly fish. The corydoras (armoured) cats mostly stay small, eat little or no algae, and would get lost in most ponds. North American bullhead and channel cats can stay out all year, but again they will eat fish. Let me know if I missed anyone. Hope this helps! John

 

[jneg]

I have a pleco in my small pond. I bought 2 small ones (less than 2"). Now about 1-1/2 years later I only have one (don't know what happened to the other one since nothing was found). It is about 12" long so it gets big preatty quick. It doesn't harm my other fish but keeps the bottom very clean of algae. They are Tropical fish so they won't tolerate very cold water. There are some species of pleco that don't grow too much and there are a few varieties that have different patterns but most are just brown in color.

 

[koiguy1969]

50*f is the lowest temp you want to expose your pieco to...i have a 20"er in my pond..but he winters in my 800 gal basement pond, along with all the others.

 

[whiskey]

hi thank koiguy/jneg/haro was thinking next year getting two plecostomus, one for each pond. What time of year would you think, putting them outside /bring them in, being i live on east side of England, would i be right in thinking May......to......sept plus food advise. Is there a specific type best suited to british weather.

 

[HARO]

Sorry, Terry, but after I posted I went back and realized you had specified plecos in your question, but thought I'd leave it anyway. May to september sounds about right as I believe your weather is somewhat milder than ours. Here it would be june to august as we can get frost in the early part of september. A lot would depend also on pond location, sun exposure, etc. As for food, I would not worry about it for the summer... you want them to eat algae, after all, and they will help themselves to the goldfishes' food as well. Indoors, they will take almost any prepared fish foods, but try to stick with one with a high plant-based content. Also, they love lettuce, spinach, zuchini slices, and such. John

 

[whiskey]

thanks john.

 

[koiguy1969]

i put all my fish outside when the water maintains a consistant temp of 55*f or higher...and back inside when its about the same.

 

[JohnB]

I have goldfish, White Cloud Mountain minnows and rosy red minnows in my 1,000 gallon waterfall pond year round. They thrive and breed. This year, I added guppies and both (4) albino and (2) peppered cortadoras for the summer. They too thrived. The six guppies (2 males and 4 females) have produced 50 or so babies which are now young adults and beautifully colored. I plan to bring the guppies inside for the winter. I’ll try to catch the Cory cats too for indoor quarters, but they don’t often present themselves for capture, so some may have to overwinter in the pond. The pond is in ground and 4-feet plus deep, so water temps should stay in the high 50’s to 60’s.

 

[Mmathis]

@JohnB Hello and welcome! You are responding to a very old thread. The OP is no longer around. Why not go over to our “introductions” topic and tell us a little about your pond! Also, where do you live?

 

[GBBUDD]

channel cats can stay out all year, but again they will eat fish

I HAVE two channel cats one white one black and the white one is damn near 20" and has a heck of an appetite. But unfortunately fortunately they have not eaten any fish that i am aware of. i suppose if left with no food it would be a mater of time.

My vote is for a blue gill or sun fish but i would only introduce a male as they are more colorful and do not reproduce . they will eat the eggs and the fry and do so happily

 

[Mmathis]

@GBBUDD Ten year old thread…

 

[brokensword]

@GBBUDD Ten year old thread…

that's okay, GB was bored. And he needed a moment to vent on his own catfish loafer...